NIMAH ISMAIL NAWWAB

Freedom Writers

The scribe’s spirit lifts
scenting the perfume of promising openness
taking a deep breath of tangy freshness
freedom of speech hailed in surprised jubilation
when the hardened bands of taboos
break, seep through the hardened cracks
of centuries of cemented, walled-up silence

A shredded canvas set aside
a new tapestry emerges
with new strokes of images, music, songs
of a nation reborn

Eons of timeless taboos,
caged, iced passions
           let loose
as the posture of abiding patience
             dissolves
And bottled up minions of silence
feel the blessed rain wash away
        the raw
          suppressive residue,
of  judgment,
inequality,
          intolerance

Reality bends
        and breaks apart
            in a shower of brilliant breathtaking
                                                                     horizons