My Long Lost Love...Poem By Bertha Mukodzani

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I keep a trunk under my bed,

Occasionally crack its rusty lock

to reveal bundles of epistles from yesteryear,

before the winds of separation tore a rift so wide.

I remember the sound of your footsteps,

as you tracked behind me after school,

the warmth of your surreptitious hand,

as you slid a page into my pocket, 
the sound of your unassuming voice,

and the look in your eyes,

that finally jolted my heart into submission.

There is something about the earthy pages,

that reminds me of our first heady kiss beneath the tree,

on that sweltering summer’s day,

when due to sudden terror, I spoke of Baba’s menacing rage,

should he unmask the designs of our hearts.

Tender-aged, I had no business falling in love.

Still, I harboured faith in your stamina,

your determination to confront his disdain.

The world could hang for all I cared.

What we’d planted could never be uprooted,

Love that survived our aching bellies,

when savage locusts stripped the fields bare,

and the treacherous terrains we scaled

barefoot for our daily dose of tutelage,

not to mention the green-eyed monster.

We plodded along,

dodging every peril like soldiers in the Gulf war.

We had glorious plans to sheath our minds

Plans for our future,

And it was not long before you gained your worldly ticket.

Perseverance and sagacity had finally granted you victory.

Now, seasons have rolled into decades,

and all I have to show are these yellowing sheets.

Tears have dried, and yet the heart still bleeds.

As I dissect every word, phrase, and sentence wreathed with the promise -

I shall return, I will marry you someday.

I exhale a huge breath,

A breath of exasperation.