TATA MADIBA NELSON ROLIHLAHLA MANDELA

Tata Madiba
Rolihlahla
The Shaker of Trees
Trouble Maker
Nelson Mandela
The closing of the eyes
The passing of the spirit
One journey ends
The eternal one begins
You live in our heart and mind
Forever
The determination and fortitude
The simplicity and truthfulness
Is not for the faint of heart
For those that are fake
Cannot stand their ground
The 26 years in prison
The many inroads before that
In the movement and liberation
The court hearing and prompt up
Charges of the past
Bear witness to stellar determination
To represent and serve the people
This journey has just began
For those that know better
Leaders of today passed on from
A leader — the home of humanity
A F R I C A

There is a light
That still shines
For those that bear
Scares and trauma
Of yesterday's woes
A P A R T H E I D
And survived

There is freedom
And there is license
Abuse of freedom
Is license
Practiced in many nations
Linked to discrimination
Segregation of
Blatant horrors of torture
Seen in our jails
And in our Reservations
For all the vain talk
The reality stares us in the face
Here at home the
Native American
Whose home we have tarnished
With greed, stealing, and rape
Bite the hand that fed us
And still we think
We are right when we are damn
W R O N G

Africa has produced leaders
Yes the home of all mankind
Tata Madiba
Embraced all
As any stellar human
Being would
He tried to be a saint
Admitting openly that he was
A sinner
Rolihlahla
The shaker of trees
Trouble maker
For good
Bringing solace to millions
The world over
The light here has gone
To shine the world over
Forever


Francisco Da Costa
December 11, 2013
San Francisco, California