JESSICA MADLALA

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I never had cause to doubt her

Her smile could open gates

Dress crabs, light fires and keep me warm at night

She smelled of sandalwood it seemed to me

Certainly some natural spice, warm and tasty

It was her natural way that was charming

While innocent, she knew the ways of the world

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Never at a loss for humour, she giggled like a drain

Her smile could lift the darkest mountains

and throw them wholesale into the sea

She could paddle a dugout and spear a big-eyed Tuna

Gatch a Spotted Grunter and bake its delicious white flesh

On the briefest, cutest  barbecue you ever did see

That she built of twigs and dried leaves so carefully

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She would listen to me for hours and hours patiently

Her smile melted frozen rivers that never reach the sea

and she was always more than a woman to me

But when the Bulls Eye Squall came that day

or any other, not like any other, my handsome brother

Jessica herself took off and was gone

and she took the plaited shawl I gave her

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       writtenbyedenbray20.03.2018

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Frozen Rivers by After The Fire – 1982

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Moving headlights shining through the rain
Neon diamonds light the streets again
Songs of Freedom written on the wall
Words of Heroes spoken as they fall

You’re telling me the same old story
On and on and on
You’re never going to learn to stand up on your own

I gave you everything you said you wanted more
Love lies broken, I’ve heard it all before
Good intentions are all the same to me
Frozen rivers never reach the sea

You’re telling me the same old story
On and on and on
You’re never going to learn to stand up on your own