29/10/2025
By: KB Nghonyama (Translated by GPT-5)
> We were warned, mother — never fall beneath its shadow,
For it enters uninvited, asking nothing.
Deaf like the storm, fierce like the wind,
It sweeps away even the proud and the strong.
Stand firm, child, and pray not to meet it.
When it visits a home, it leaves only sorrow —
Grief, struggle, and the cold silence of mourning.
No knife, no spear delivers its blow,
It is the wind that tears through the village,
The sun dims when it passes by,
And the Father of Darkness walks in silence.
It travels through house and wilderness alike,
When the tempest nears, my people, prepare!
On the day of misfortune, keep your eyes open,
Trouble spares no heart, no child.
When it enters, all things scatter —
Peace, joy, and love flee before it.
Because of it we lose mothers and daughters,
Even our beloveds are taken.
Who among us still stands firm?
None — for it does not choose,
It takes the pure and the sinner alike.
From beneath the earth its voice still echoes,
Let us rise while we still breathe,
And walk before the darkness claims the path.
