The living embers in the hearth have grown cold
The Lion on the rock has gone beneath
An Eagle has fallen by the Grim Teeth
Petals of our Pride in frost lay
Threnodies travel with the One on the Lost’s Way
In cornucopias our wails abound
Myrrh and mirth this day be drowned
Our tears moisten where the Oak waits to be interred
Doubtful of what occurred, we ponder on what curse we incurred
The gods have forsaken, our prayers futile
Perhaps, this sacrifice shall atone-the tears lengthening the nile
O Achebe! Hear the canons in raucous salute
Our moans dance to the dirge on the piper’s flute
O Achebe! We reminisce on thy legacies built
Those emeralds adorning thy sword’s hilt
O Achebe! We fever the physicians with eternal reproach
And the Reaper’s Scythe that did encroach
Chosen from the stars, you fall to craft craters in our hearts
Thy lustrous quill is envied by the great arts
You leave to live and traverse Elysian Fields
We bear your tutelage like escutcheons on shields
Behold! Thy Maker grins at a life well spent
The stars are startled this moment.
Farewell. . . .
Written by: Lauz Deo
Edited by: Kukogho Iruesiri Samson
