Warrior sons of Zulu
of uMnguni, uMalandela, and uPhunga-noMageba
Singing the songs of death
the songs of life
songs for the king
Pressing forward in a jovial dance
of the feet, spear and shield
They were content
to give up their lives for the ancestral dreams
The dream that drove
uMnguni across the rivers of Ethiopia
The dream that brought
uMalandela down into the Gondwana Land
The dream of uShaka Zulu:
one people, one king, one free country
But most of all they did it for the children
and their children’s children
Courageous souls
Against all odds
Singing their own songs
indifferent to the thundering sounds
of steel
How can we forget, how best to remember
we for whom they sacrificed
Do we sing the songs they sang
push their philosophy, be courageous?
Do we tell their story over and over again?
LLM Mbatha
http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/esandlwana/
