the drifter
it
begins
with a
road
and a
lone man
crossing
a bridge
to go
back
into
town
it’s a
call
a
warning
a line
drawn on the dust
which
the man wipes out
a
descent into the underworld
totally
alone
there
are no villains
behind
those doors
only his
fears
the
memories of what
it
means to
be a
prisoner
after
surviving
energy
rises
as he
fights back
into
the light
and
unleashes
an orgy
of emotions
music
triggers rebirth
after
the initiation
comes
resurrection
and
masks are thrown away
it is a
mission
and his
father is
on his
side
a force
of nature
a light
among
shadowy figures
his will
the shape of a sword
sharpened
by experience
forged
like steel
a
shape-shifting metaphor and
a
sacred marriage
of
intentions
he
deeps his hands
in the
mud he mounded up
to bury
his past
his
wars are over now
or so
he thinks
as he
passes the torch
to the
young girl
with
warrior spirit
who
follows him
wherever
he goes
Dr Raphael d’Abdon was born in Italy and moved to South Africa in 2008. In 2013 he edited the collection Marikana. A Moment in Time, published his debut poetry collection sunnyside nightwalk, and was featured at “Poetry Africa”. His second collection of poems, salt water, was published in 2016.
