Excerpt from Song of Remembrance: A Postcolonial Suite
- Excerpt from Song of Remembrance:A Postcolonial Suite
1
If unshackling were a songI'd slide my palm on skinAnd watch it trail to airIf unshackling were a song
2
Forgive my days of fullnessIn this land of filch, let my wares be witnessSokar, you who bless these hands with flourishAs my heart is weighed against a featherForgive my days of fullness
3
The bones of possibility, laid to restStratum, the root's architectureMy map floats in an ocean sweepAnd what do we exhume from this great distance?The bones of possibility, laid to rest
4
Every time I look to this seaI am reminded of my own humanityEvery time I shuffle my stepI recall everything that is left
5
Intrinsic her name Buried dead her call Antiquity, enigmatic wonder History a chafe of surface and burn Cracked light into woven earth [End Page 146]
6
Who desiccated night?In the nation of wontShading our day from the pelagic roadStripped the bark of verdure from the day
7
My body has absorbed this poisonNot like the carcinogens of the worldFlanked by an iridescenceFraught by the way of homeMy body has absorbed this poison
8
If cartography were a songWould she dot her notes on the river bottom?Would she croon her maps on a mountain ridge?Would her cadence lead us home?If cartography were a song
9
I'll tell a story of life and deathCarve the mask of dignityMake a place for fireI'll tell a story of life and death
10
Nefer is the land Stolen in her grace How she seeps from the wisdom of her own Made part by the legacy of hunger The story of wingless birds [End Page 147]
Matthew Shenoda (shenoda@matthewshenoda.com) is the author of the poetry collections Seasons of Lotus, Seasons of Bone (2009) and Somewhere Else (2005), winner of the American Book Award. He has taught in the fields of ethnic studies and creative writing and is currently Assistant Provost for Equity and Diversity and Professor in the School of Critical Studies at the California Institute of the Arts.
Notes
Ancient Egyptian god of Memphite necropolis. Often shown with a human body and the head of a hawk. Although his origins are obscure, he is believed to have been a patron of craftsmen as well as a god of fertility.
Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic sign most often depicted to mean "good" or "beautiful." [End Page 148]
