Monday 19 March 2012

Kifo ni Kizungumkuti Kweli: Death is a Mystery



Life Gone Too Soon--- R.I.P. Owen.


Kifo ni kizungumkuti kweli
Sikielewi, sikibaini katu

Death is a mystery
I don’t understand it

Kifo ni kama mlio wa radi
Kingurumapo dharuba yake huipuliza maisha

Death is a rumble of thunder
When it roars, a life is blown away

Kifo ni mwangwi
Ni kama upepo unaovuma kwa kasi

Death is an echo
It is like wind blowing furiously

Kifo ni sauti mwanana
Ni mziki mwororo sikio la mja huitikia

Death is a soft lilting voice
It is a soft music humans hear

Kifo ni uchungu, majonzi, simanzi
Ni jakamoyo linalokata maini

Death is pain, sadness, tears
It is a hacksaw into the liver

Kifo ni njia yetu sote waja
Leo tupo, kesho hatupo

Death is Our Path, pilgrims,
Today we are, tomorrow we are gone

Kifo ni tandabelua
Usiku wa kiza, unaogubika furaha

Death is uncertainty
A dark night, a silhouette of sorrow

Kifo ni maswali yaso majibu
Migongano ya hisia tofauti
Death is a puzzle
A mishmash of varied feelings


Kifo ni jembe dogo la kiserema
La kupalilia maua yaliyonyaushwa

Death is a small hoe
To harvest wilted flowers

Kifo ni lolote lile
La kutukumbusha sub’ra

Death is anything
To remind us of the virtue of patience


Kifo ni gari
Lisilo na dereva, japo wa ajabu

Death is a vehicle
Without a driver, yet a mysterious one

Kifo ni shubiri kwenye koo
Kifo ni pumzi kwenda mbio

Death is an aloe to the throat
Death is fast breathe

Kifo ni kibao kaburini
Kisemacho, “Usinitazame makaburini”

Death is an epitaph
Saying, “Don’t look for me in the cemetery”

Kifo ni mawazo, fikra
Ambayo hatutoizika kaburini

Death is memories, reminiscence
That can’t be buried

Kifo ni furaha, ni sherehe
Japo ya maisha yaliyoisha haraka

Death is happiness, a celebration
Though for a life nipped in the bud








*******


This poem is an elegy to a good friend of mine who passed on. We studied Law together. We were in the same firm together. This morning, I got the sad news that he had passed on. Till we meet, Owen Ndika, till we meet. You took death bravely and Tororot saw it befitting to call you. And as we, mere mortals and pilgrims on this Earth, celebrate your life, may Tororot give us peace and strength. It is difficult for your parents and relatives but let Tororot, the Ultimate Comforter, be with them.

2 comments:

Sherry Blue Sky said...

Beautiful and sad, my fellow pilgrim. He is gone too soon. Your poem has power and beauty.

echoesofthehills said...

Thanks a lot, Koko. This is my gift to a friend and colleague.

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