I

Our elation reflected the thrills

 The birth of a child exudes.

In the newness of our dawn,

We basked in our rebirth.

Floods of joy held sway

Over our hearts, as our eyes

Beamed with untold bliss.

Our hopes mounted to its peak.

In those days, our gallantry

Carved us out as the pride of

Africa much to the shock of

Our overlords. Our flight towards

Progress was with selfless zeal,

A zeal soaked in palpable dreams.

                      II       

 Time’s orbit has revealed our fate,

Selfish hands harvest in greed.

Hearts that offered are withered.

The beauty of our dawn rests in carnage.

 Our shepherds dwell in lavish citadels

 Erected with the sweat of the penniless,

The poverty of the masses, is the paucity

Of selfless service. For this, our unbound

Greed grinds our independence into dust.

Our boast, our pride, our joy are but mirage,

Our progress, our revival, our survival

Thrive on the paltry handouts of donors.

                      III

Where is the independence fought for?

Where has our common sense flown to?

What have we sacrificed our intellects for?

In the eyes of world, we are mystery breed,

Why? We have it all, we have none at all.

As greed burned in the eyes of our own,

The pot that held our water was shattered

And today, if the mercy of our past overlords

Dims, we clutch at their feet for crumbs.

Yesterday, there existed a tree that bore fruits,

Today, its past glory eclipse its present infamy.