Through the window, I looked far down

The society I saw was that born of votaries

I could not fathom the cause of this cataclysm

A world where the cock could moo

Morals and tenets are six feet down

As the wind took a swipe at the full moon

The superstars jog my memory

Those who turned the hands of the clock

Here I am, roaming the streets, the net and to the lectern

But I couldn’t change the world

 

The triumph of the these icons marvelled me

Certainly wiki can’t explain this

They lived when the state of affairs was far worse

But restored situation to normal

Alas! Today is a reverse of the finished job

 

I came out of my old ladder-back

Then I ambled along the passage, dimly lit by the moon’s echo

Crossed the threshold of the reading room

Like a soldier in a slow march, I walked round the shelves

Trying to make out the mystery, I lifted a book

 

As I wrap up the first page,

I heard a mumble from my heart, then I pin my ears back at it

If this will make clear the problem

Oh my! I’m going to be like the superstars.

My heart declares:

 

Not even the skyscrapers were built from the sky

All buildings have their plinth in the earth

That supports them at any height

The  thing that lacks a good base will soon wane

That’s the focus of the one with big name

 

 

The superstars never traded Gold for bronze!

When fire is the topic, the teacher may mar the class

By burning the books to show the class

What’s the essence of an exemplar?

When the focal source of knowledge will be lost

 

 

Oh! Man, you don’t fetch the well water with a basket

Yea! The source is right but the method is wrong

The cub learns before it roars…

And will never learn that from a dog

Be sure to learn right and share it the right way.

 

Oh man, don’t you observe?

Mother hen breaks the grain for her chicks

And she will never break the stone for them

Yea! The superstars made it, by grooming their offspring

Know! With the best legacy, that’s knowledge.

 

I felt a soft tap on my back,

Gosh! I’ve been dreaming in the class

The teacher asked: what’s the component of the earth?

I said: “Earth, had received honoured guests”

Our salaf the superstars… The ideal Models!

 

By: Siddiq Oyelami

Published in At-Tarbiyyah Magazine(1st Edition)