MOMENTS
Nobody really knows tomorrow's present
nor if the sun will smile on us
if the rain will cease to come
nor if the wind will cease to blow
if we will be left packing the pieces of a broken heart.
nobody knows what tomorrow will sing
if laughter will turn to an ocean of tears,
those moments words seem so far away to describe
what lies within,
when you stare at the clock and wish the hand to go back
when life greets you with the unexpected........
keep hope burning like a candle.

Nobody knows when loved ones will say an eternal good bye
and leave us staring into the sky for answers.....
if friends will walk away or stay by us forever
moments........
Nobody knows if we will find diamonds or rubies.
But keep hope burning like a candle
and share some with those who have
lost hope to a distant yesterday....

composed by Mfoniso

RUNS

One match stick can light an unquenchable fire,
a dance with time can make a difference.
We sleep in your arms and you just go by
we awake only to ask ourselves what,
 have we really been doing.
We see the man we could have been
staring at us from a distance,
because we played with time........

We sleep in your arms,and our
achievements run away
all that we could have had,
We wake up with gray and wonder why we are poor,,,,,,
our children begin to ask
What were you dong when your contempories
burnt the midnight candle?
We sleep in your arms and you can never be recovered....

It's a dangerous thing to sleep in your arms,
time lost can never be recovered..

Welcome to Questioning JUNE.....

BECAUSE

Because we have known pain,we can hear the sound of joy,

because we have known shame,we can receive his light,

we have been crippled so we can dance to the drumbbeat from afar,

we have seen death so we appreciate life,

we have seen war,so we walk towards the beckoning of peace,

we have seen corruption,so we will gladly welcome justice,

we have wept,so we can hear the cries of the innocent,

we have been stabbed by problems,so we can extend a hand of

kindness to others,

we have been put down,so we can now speak out.

In any and in everything all things work together for good,

that we may find the true purpose of living,

and reach-out to bless others.....

He cares even when you do not think so.............

FLY

When the night is darkest,
the dawn of day is breaking.
fly..........
fly into new beginnings,
fly into the road least travelled
for some have discovered Gold therein.
for the days are long but few,
fly and keep flying......
For the end comes slowly and unannounced.
The miracle of the sky is yours to hold,
if you will just fly then you can reach for the sun.

One more step has ushered
the ordinary into the corridor of destiny.
fly............
If we wait for fair weather,
our wings may be crippled.
Fly against the wind and the storm.
Take the wings of mercy and fly beyound the mistakes,
For even the broken wings can be mended by the healing
balm of Grace.
Fly beyound the status quo and the limit they have set.
whether it be sunny or it be rainy,
Fly......
for endless possibilities lie beyound the limit
Generations will be affected by your flight.
Fly don't look back,don't give up,keep flying.....
Like the eagles keep flying,
Don't look back,don't give up.

FINDING JOY

Life as we know is filled with many uncertainties,this year Nations of the world have been hit with one crisis after the other and Nigeria has not been left out from flood disasters,bombings,building collapse,the list has been endless,just when you think it is all over.What about individual crisis i heard of a banker who committed suicide because her bethroted jilted her.Very sad you may say.
The crisis that goes on within our hearts is the greatest crisis of all and that's what eventually gives birth to the crisis without,for most people JOY seems like a fading ANTHEM,only heard from afar.When friends and loved ones walk away leaving you stranded in the middle of the highway,when a loved one kisses this world Goodbye,when you get that sack letter unexpectedly or you roam the streets for months unend looking for a job and the list is endless,some will say how do you expect me to smile in the midst of all these......................
The deepest fires can still bring out Gold,we can find joy in the midst of our crisis,when we fix our eyes on the one who is the same yesterday,today, and forever.In the midst of that turbulent situation remember the miracles you took for granted,and know that tommorow is just a promise away......
Remember that people are very unpredictable, so when they hurt us or decide to walk away we should invariably make up our minds to keep moving on,our minds should be set on the one who will keep singing with us through the darkest night..
God is not a thought away he is indeed with us,and the Joy of the Lord can be your strength....when the unexpected greets you,it just came to pass..







alla

PEACE

Once I had trouble with myself
Wondering pondering and looking for help
All about me i could only see and hear
Agonies of grief and fear
Then with deep thought i wished and questioned
If only the pains and confusion
were all but great illusions.

All of a sudden from high above
It seemed i saw a white dove
Flying over me with an olive in it's mouth
with great joy i said aloud
Alas! all my troubles are ceased
For that was a symbol of peace!

Peace that surpasses all understanding
such that brings with it a lasting calmness
Taking away all sorrows and suffering
And giving joy in it's fullness
So without doubt i knew that all of these
were the wondrous works of peace!

PEACE

Shattered by the storms of Life,
Wounded by the pain of the Past,
Bruised by the thief of the Future
And plagued by the fear of the unknown
I wandered through life
Seeking for a life of ease
In a world full of Ills.


From Jerusalem i wandered,
From the place of peace i strayed
And into the hands of thieves i fell.
Oh what hope was my future i asked.


Then out of a storm a Gentle whisper came,
The chastisement of your peace i Bore!
Oh what peace you often Forfeit!
Oh what needless pain you Bear!

The lily of the valley I am,
The prince of peace I am,
The keeper of Isreal I am.
Return to Jerusalem the place of PEACE,
The place where Mountains Surround,
Return to me and my peace I'd give to you
Putting your life back in one peace......


Composed by Esther Antai
08038319920
Contestant of cedars of Passion
May 2011 competition.

THE REBIRTH OF NIGERIA

Behold the rising sun!
Fell the peace in the Atmosphere
Brightness fell like the stars
The earth moved strickly to the commandment of change
As winged chariot hurry near
Rendering songs of peace.

Wonderful!oh how wonderful
Is a day like this
For a child is born
No wonder the ageing gets renewed in
amazement of the new born child
We no longer bargain away our conscience
in the market place under the
weight of poverty.
For the ambassadors of poverty are no more
The killers of our future are no more.


come! come and see!
The vegetative freshness blossomed
As mild as cinnamon
The fragrance of indian spice
came rolling in the air
Turning and turning
As the waters sang songs of victory
For the corrosive wars of corruption
has come to an end.
For we will no longer drink mud for water
and rats for food
Oh! what a peace.

For we will entangle ourselves into one ball in the
magic maze of change
Bringing to us all a new phase of life.


Composed by Deborah Bada.
Contestant of cedars of passion
May 2011 Competition.

BEYOUND THE CLOUDS

Wondering through,
Dancing through,
Just walking by,
Not so far that he cannot hear,
His eyes can pierce through
Even the tiny details.
His hands are so near,
We can be wrapped in them
Have you stopped that your voice
May touch his ears
Have you laid down the burdens
and questions at his receiving feet?
His eyes and yours are the only ones
That travel with us everywhere.


Can we launch out without
Kissing his ears with our voices
Troubles behind, troubles before,
The breadth of his nostrils can
Bring them down.
From the simple utterances of our heart
Dead men have greeted the living as
Men raised their voices to God
The barren have welcomed babies as women raised
their voices before the altar.
Mountains can melt into plain ground
as we raise our voices to the highest...

Complaining,grumbling,murmuring,
Things will still stay the same.
Sitting, standing, or kneeling as we speak
into his heart we can get the map and
Blueprint for our lives.......
On bended knees Elijah saw his hands
in the clouds
And the rain came pouring down.
As we pray we can hold
the stormy winds in our hands
and receive grace to be messengers of peace.
As we pray the eternal hand can help us
live our ordinary lives as
Revelations are birth for the extraordinary.
Kiss his ears with your voice.....

THE STING OF IDLENESS

Looking out through the window called life
Saw a set of great people that were immovable
Stung by what seem pleasurable
But yet webbed in it.

Early to bed but yet the last to rise
with reservoir of excuse never ending
Always seeing impossibilities in various
Shapes and sizes
Which they have accurately built.

Unable to stop wishing their lives and good
Opportunities away
Immaculate give me fellows but never giving
Fantasying of wealth they have amassed in their slumber
oh, well beautified devil's workshop.


In the passage of time,the creator came to take
But like the fig tree, found no fruit therein
Buried six feet below with great treasure and wealth
Containing too much than the grave could carry,
they all withered away

I asked why, Oh why
And the reply was the THE STING OF IDLENESS.


Composed by UDUAK TONY,
2nd prize winner
cedars of passion poem competition
MAY 2011.

MY VOIC

Behold the world he made
The lives he created
Outside the night
In his image where we formed
Twisted and stubborn
Cracking the wind to give us life,
Like a surgeon in the theatre.


Life we got,
Bringing the anxiety undefined
For let my voice clap their hands
As more louder sounds to heaven are cast,
For under the cover of the moonlight
shall my songs of joy be heard
and in trance shall men trend toward the
Intricate of the magic maze of my voice.


For treasure,thou art woman
I have done it a thousand times before
And i will do it a million times again
For the jovial bride wept flood of joy to he who appreciated the treble of her soul.


Dreams beyond dreams
Our echoes roll from soul to soul
Cheerful-creeping in the early day as shown the excitement of our heart
For my voice will pass from age to age to the surgeon who made us
To all:women are neccessary good for himself he has formed us.



COMPOSED BY:DEBORAH BADA

2ND PRIZE WINNER CEDARS OF PASSION POEM COMPETITION 2010.

HOW PRECIOUS

Touched by your hands,
your love pours out like
honey from a honeycomb,
oh!how precious
that you will pierce our eyes
with light that floods like waters,
oh! how precious
To know that you will not throw us away
Even when marred by the stains
gathered from the cares of life.
With our imperfection yet you
stroke us with your perfection.
Amazingly striking, how so amazing....

you know us all by name,
Even the hairs on our head
one by one are known by you.
That your heart can touch ours
in a dance of love,
oh!how precious.
from sunrise to unquestionable sunset
you are unknown to change,and
yet you can change all things by the
breadth of your nostrils
No ink can describe you enough.
The clapping wings of the bird
sing your praise
how precious!
The singing cry of the newborn
sing to your singing soveriegnty...

To think that the days of our lives
are written out even before we get there...
and everyday you give us a second chance
To redo the script where we failed
No wonder dark clouds give way yo
The smiling sun.
oh!how precious.......

CLOSING IN

The darkness strolled in unawares,
Light slapped it away
Many struggles with lingering questions
Days when it seemed like the sun ran,
Leaving us with hope as an embrace
Passing through the field see slain bodies
All around,
The cry of his faithfulness should ring
through the air...
In closing remember when the hands were
too weary to move or clash
His own hands pulled us together.


That we lay not six feet below the Grave
should make us skip with joy,,,...
seeing the sun smile down,
A second chance greets us like never before.
The one who is called beginning and end
Has walked with us all the way.
Never left us stranded in the middle of nowhere
Our hearts should drip with thanksgiving
For only fools will say there is no God.

In closing,to stop to ponder about the
Life we have lived will do us much good.
The seconds and minutes we have spent
Go into memorial speaking good or bad of us.


In the solitude of the mind we can ride
On the wings of transformation.
As we drive out of the day,we need to
Question the things we have done.
In his face we can find our face
And embrace our true Identity...

CLOSING IN

perez

CLOSING IN

perez

CLOSING IN

perez

TRUTH

so pure,as light that gives direction,
cannot be questioned by the passing of time
and events....
If we refuse you,foolishness strikes us,
and leaves us naked with pain.....
to know you is to find our way
Embracing your embrace is to live.

We want to walk away when you seem so hard
but even in bitterness you will set free,
Generation after generation you remain constant
unchanging as the sun.
Not subject to arguement
or the manipulation of feeble minds
Truth does not lie but remain as white
as snow.
you colour us with beauty....

The tentacles of truth can heal
a dying heart.
lost ways are regained when you point,
to live without you is to live in misery....
fading shadows all around but yours remains,
To know you as a friend is to be set free.....

WHEN DAD NEVER CAME HOME

When he saw her from across the room he had a feeling that she was the kind of woman he will love to spend the rest of his life with,can a lifetime commitment just be reduced to a passing feeling,it makes my heart wonder.....with all the recent happenings in families round the world,it has become pertinent for men and women to sit back and think of the tide of hormones that just rise and fall,much more than mere words to understand that love and family cannot be reduced to a passing feeling.
No matter how civilzed the human society becomes we cannot overlook the fact that the family is the bedrock of every society,if our homes are in chaos,it will become difficult to address social problems.
How many children today are growing up without a father figure to guide and show them love,there is an increasing rise in a fatherless and motherless generation,even when the children live in the same house with their parents,it really breaks my heart in different directions as i see our children growing up without parental guidance.How does a father explain a situation where he leaves for work and never comes back home and yet his family is worried sick about him,changes all his phone lines and leaves no link as to how his family can find him,the beautiful girl he married is thrown off balance and the children are left wondering what went wrong,quite sad you may say....what about when dad lives in the same house with his children and yet is so absent from their lives,maybe only dishes out instructions from time to time,what about when dad keeps concubines who are about the age of his children?how does he raise his children with the values that will sustain them as productive citizens.What have we reduced ourselves to?when did we become so heartless and carefree not bothering about how our actions affect our young ones.what can i say,except a simple prayer that God will heal our homes........

SHE CRIES

She Cries,
Look at her as she really cries.....
When we stop praying
She cries....
Strangled by looting and Injustice
She Cries.....
See her children held bound by poverty
Working so hard getting so little.
The National Treasury is left Naked,
Immorality stealing away our Children.
Nigeria cries oh! she really cries.

Can we see our young minds wasting
Can we be more than this?
Our structures are decaying,
One by one we see them die.
What lies ahead for unborn children?
See our mother as she cries....


Where is that Generation of Surgeons
that will repair the Broken bones of our mother
with values and principles
that can heal our land.
Rubbing in the balm of Righteousness.
Unborn children will require this of us.
We can reach out to the different sectors
And straighten out those crooked places

DEFINING MOMENTS

When everybody seems to be so busy rushing off to meet the Deadline,
strike a business deal,trying to make 24hrs count for something
But we forget,........................
We will never regret the times we stopped to give a listening ear
When all that mattered between the second and minute was a smile...
We will never regret the time we bent down to wipe away the tears of a crying child.
Those defining moments that can determine so much about our Destiny.............
Meetings will end but the memories of kind deeds we leave behind in the hearts of others will last forever.
Our children will remember the times
we took out time from our busy schedule to play with them,they might not remember the new dress we threw into their face.
The times we took out to treat others well will always count for something.
We will not regret we made an effort to hold our tongue,even when we desperately wanted to say something.
Those times we extend a hand of Encouragement to somebody on the verge of giving up,
When we looked into the eyes of others and let them know we believe in them..........
Defining Moments when all that mattered was a LITTLE...!