I remember walking
Skinny and young, young
Behind that white donkey
Up we're climbing
There's the mountain 
Large, larger than life it seems
Through a child's eyes
The foot of Chances
As the slow crow flies
Cultivated variety
Chocolate brown earth
Two Ghauts gaping
Men farming
A jagged and quite comfy blackish rock
Sugar cane clump
Middle of a haphazard, natural and manmade stonewall
I would sit, or lie and listen
To Old Nayga “speak”
Waxing on even older days
In the shadow of Chances Peak

Seymour 
The perpetual loner
Cook, farmer, carpenter
Can do it all it seems
Seen it all it seems
Can grow it all it seems
Galvanize nails, flour and seed
He even produced that nice cali-weed
Occasional drunk
Had that familiar off key song
But him and my old man got along
There were things I didn't understand then
And I realize now
They didn't quite get it either
So many topics they're covering
Some middling
All damn fascinating
The intricacies of growing that perfect 
Purple or white yam
The cuts and the ash
The hole and the grass
Constant schooling
Miles away from class

People vanishing on bright clear days
Lights and flights
A Duppy and shadows up on Galloways
Lights and flights
On dark star filled nights
All sorts of tricks
Colors rampaging across Brodericks
The odd plantation story
So and not so funny
A flash of something black 
Perhaps a cat
Massa horse rearing
Him flat on his back
Village people whispering
Obeah business that
By next week bell tolling
Another one gone
Another Englishman soon coming

Some things that would run the blood cold
A certain mermaid cave
A certain entrance to bobby hole
That long dead shipbuilder
Still cutting wood in Spring Ghaut
And that headless soldier
I unfortunately peeped one time, up on long corner
Footprints in that neighbors yard
Whose?
Those don't look like nobody's shoes
Voices urgently calling
Fading into the hills
You better stay put
What type of game?
What's in the dark?
What's leading you by name?
Fire coming off a certain vessel
So and so burnt to a crisp 
On that well-made bed
Somebody went due south
To set somebody else dead
The Jumbie dance
Loved that shit
They would go on and on….
She could dance
She could dance
Like nobody's business
Shivers up your spine
That woman can turn and blow your mind

Those tall moss covered mango trees
Lush green leaves
A flash of yellow
Ripe juicy glisten
Old Nayga talking
You just gotta listen…

Billy boy, you asleep?
Not even close
Not a word though
As they would say
A bright me a play
Knowledge is power
Curiosity is king
Old Nayga talking
Invisible bees buzzing
In the shadow of Chances
I was always
Listening


Old Nayga - © 2005 Ahkenaton  all rights reserved