Ladders On A Woman's Legs Poem by Sarah Mkhonza

The meal I lay before you
Is baked in the pit of my stomach
Which is empty right now
For I poured out my strength,
Trying to save those of you
Who give life the strongest kick,
And jump to the other side
Where poverty was long imprisoned,
With no right to parole.

If you get there do not set him free,
Even if he should blackmail you,
Or bribe you with bars of gold,
If he makes a lousy deal with liquor,
Raise the bail even higher,
So it is not one man can pay,
For the problem will be yours,
For I will say I told you so.

This zeal you have of life,
Has never gone hungry,
Of things that trouble me,
In all the years I've seen,
Of people living their teens.

When I say jump higher
I mean scale the heights,
Your world has laid out hurdles,
That my world has never seen,
For we tripped on lower levels,
For ours were broken ladders,
All worn on a poor woman's legs.