By Nyana Kakoma | May 15th, 2014

"If you think your eyes will give you away...." Photo by Edward Echwalu
“If you think your eyes will give you away….”
Photo by Edward Echwalu

‘I beg you,

If you feel something like love for me,

Not to let me know it now

When I feel nothing so certain for you.

Wait until you’ve conquered my pride

By pretending not to care for me.

 

I beg you,

If you think your eyes will give you away,

Not to give me that longing look

When you know it will force the moment

Wait until our heatbeats have settled

Then put your head on my shoulder.

 

I beg you,

Not to let us surrender to passion

Until our liking has grown to love

Let’s stop and look back

Let’s draw apart and sigh,

Let’s stand back to back,

Let’s say goodbye for the day

And walk our different ways

Without pausing to wait

For an echo to our last word.

 

I beg you

If you find yourself interlocked

In my embrace,

To kiss me and keep me silent

Before I start making promises

That time may choose to by-pass –

Wait until our hands are free,

Then listen to me;

Wait until our love is primed

Then give me your hand.’

This poem was published in ‘Poems from East Africa’, an anthology of poems edited by David Rubadiri and David Cook which is available in Ugandan Book stores and online here:

Poems from Africa

 

#TBT features poems and stories that were published back, back, back in the day. The ones that make us sigh, “Those were good times!”

Comments:

  1. July 5, 2014           Reply

    This is absolutely FABULOUS!!!

    1. Laban Erapu
      August 12, 2015           Reply

      Thank you for your comment on “I beg You”. If you like you can send me your email so that I can send you “Again I beg” for comparison and contrast.

      1. Juma Fredrick
        August 27, 2015           Reply

        I like it

  2. June 4, 2015           Reply

    This is just awesome, i like.

    1. Laban Erapu
      August 12, 2015           Reply

      Thank you for your comment on “I beg You”. If you like you can send me your email so that I can send you “Again I beg” for comparison and contrast.

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