His eyeballs were fireballs
they blaze like a live coal
his firm lips as dark as a charcoal
when he calls
our noses we twitch
he tarries behind after a chorus of down the hatch.
He walks as if powered by the wind
when he appears we disappear
his angry moment we fear
he knows not whether he treads the sky or the land
a leper mankind paves way for
all from depression or what for?
Teetotalers tootle for a round of tee-hee
A brief moment of ravings as of lunatics
he teeters and teeters and thumps
in the gulley he sleeps like a puddle of wee
do you know the man snoring in the loo?
I do not even though I do.
This poem is a satire on drug abuse, most especially alcoholism. The poetic persona relates to the life of a drunkard. 'His eyeballs are fireballs,' meaning that they are very red and 'blaze like a live coal.' His lips' degree of darkness is compared to that of charcoal. The first stanza clearly describes his appearance, including the need to twitch our noses when he opens his mouth to speak and where it started from '...after a chorus of down the hatch', which shows that he must have had merry with some friends.
The second stanza explores how people relate to drunkards and how he carries himself around people. He walks '...as if powered by the wind'. People cringe at his presence and fear his angry moment because they know that he is no longer in his senses as seen in 'a leper mankind paves the way for.' The last line raised the question if it all springs from depression or some other reasons like mere fun.
The last stanza further describes the situation; 'teetotalers tootle for a round of teehee,' meaning they linger in walking to Laugh at him. 'A brief moment of ravings as of lunatics' he speaks jargons like madmen. 'He teeters and thumps' after staggering for a while, he falls and 'lies in the gulley like a puddle of wee (urine).' The poem ends with someone who knows the drunkard denying that he knows him. No one wants to be known to such a person.
The poem is written in three stanzas, with each stanza having six lines (a sestet) and a rhyme scheme of abbacc. Poetic devices in the poem include simile, imagery, metaphor, alliteration, and rhetorical question.
Published on: BIRDS SEE THINGS
Check out the 50 collected Poems of Imole Olusanya