Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela.
A man born to be chief,
Became Father of the Nation.
Tata Madiba.
The world will always remember
His giant spirit
Whose wisdom, like the eagle,
soared above
The tumult of hate and anguish,
When the nation’s belly
Was being ripped by the beast of prejudice.
Tall, strong, gentle but unbending.
A chief, a leader.
A man of oak and iron,
Unbent by the ferocious winds of apartheid
That fanned the fires of hell and hate.
They tried to isolate him
Humiliate him, break him;
But he did not submit.
He studied them,
Understood them;
Kept chipping at their hearts of stone.
And as we rushed to Hell’s gate
Spurred by blind hate,
He shone the torch
And made us see,
There is no victory
At the jaws of Hell.
A patient, steadfast opponent;
He went to prison unrepentant;
Returning, fist held high,
Resolute, determined.
Many more steps were still needed
On that long, troubled walk
To freedom.
Tata Madiba,
You brought us back from the abyss.
World leaders bowed
And children waved.
Your smile, your dance,
Your shirts of bright colour,
Showed us love
Is the true compass for the future.
And now, Tata Madiba
It is time for you to return to your ancestors;
And they will welcome you
With smiles of pride.
It was a long, hard journey;
But you turned the future around.
By: Sharon Heaney Stansfield