Saturday 17 May 2014

Beneath the chaos

I've come to realize one thing about life - Its never constant.
The folds of time turn fortunes up and down ceaselessly so that life resembles a zigzag line design, constantly oscillating between good and bad, happiness and sadness, desire and contentment.
But between this whole limbo - if we take a moment. Just one moment to sit and decipher the present as it were - we would find an inexplicable sense of resolution.

Kenya has recently been fraught with terror attacks and there is a growing unrest boiling constantly, getting stronger by the hour. Death, carnage, destruction and chaos reign the news at least once a week. However, life doesn't seem to stop or stand still even in the face of annihilation. Those who are directly impacted by these events suffer the worst of its aftermath. But those of us who read about it or hear about it click our tongues, say a word of prayer and move on with our lives with just a tad bit more caution. I cant help but feel helpless. What can anyone do to stop this? Yes we can blame the government and demand action on social networking sites. Yes we can discuss it endlessly amongst ourselves. Yes we can choose to limit our movements for the sake of self-preservation. Yet in reality, we are the innocent children watching our mother country being devoured by forces beyond our control.

But instead of deluding ourselves with a sense of peace which may just be an illusion - maybe, just maybe, we should stand together as a nation. Pop the bubble of self-preservation and come into the light. Stand as one force against the mutilation of our home, our people and our reality.

The question is not if that is a possibility...the question is, will it be enough?

Wednesday 30 April 2014

Mother


Today I decided to share a poem with you which I wrote about an issue which deserves attention. We as humans need to realize the importance of our actions, and more so the consequences of our actions, on nature.



Mother

As she lies there crouched upon a flaming desert,
No end doth her eyes assert.
A battered soul and a crumpled heart for company;
A tormented being and a shattered life for comradry.
Her eyes speak a thousand words,
Pouring forth eons of reserve.
Pain encompasses her at every turn,
Everyone screaming for her to burn.
The soft silk of the Earth - upturned.
The soothing shimmer of the ocean - burned.
The crisp current of the air - tainted.
The ferocious fire of humanity - depleted.
Can you hear her lamenting?
Mother Nature is grieving.
Grieving for her Earth, grieving for her children.
Grieving because of their birth, grieving because of their insolence.
Maalika Kazia

Thursday 24 April 2014

The new face of terror

Hey guys
Today I decided to talk about an incident which occurred yesterday night in Nairobi. A saloon car exploded at the Pangani Police Station, leading to the death of 4 people - two of whom were police officers. Another explosive device found inside the car was safely removed and dismantled before it exploded.

Now, after the Westgate Mall Attack there has been a lot of unrest in the country. Every other day I come across articles about Churches being blown up, clerics being murdered in Mombasa, among other similar stories. The government is on a very vigilant path as they are scanning people, especially those of Somali origin who are living in the country. It is a risk to leave your home without carrying your original ID or passport, because if the police ask for these documents and you cant produce them, they take you down to the station.

All of these attacks have created a sheath of insecurity around the citizens of Kenya. Some people are choosing to passively ignore the situation, while others are being extremely precautious. According to me, the solution doesn't lie in pretending nothings wrong or acting like everything is.
I keep coming across articles on how youth radicalization is to blame for young people being drawn into terror groups and actually becoming brainwashed enough to commit heinous crimes in the name of faith. Due to lack of employment and a dire need for money, youth are being recruited into fanatical organizations with the hope of earning money. Can you really blame them? What they fail to see however, is that this wealth is not going to get them anywhere, because they are helping people destroy their country - their home. For that little amount of money, they are destroying the lives of countless people and eventually, their own.

As for the measures being taken by the police - I cannot say I love it, but I cannot say it is futile either. They are doing what they can. This new face of terrorism is not using a frontal approach whereby the enemy is clearly defined. The new face of terrorism involves using our own people against our own nation.

What do you say?

Wednesday 19 February 2014

Dreams






Dreams




I am a dreamer, bearing the flag of fantasy high and proud.


I am a dreamer, with aspirations writhing inside my soul; waiting to sprout out.


A hope, a challenge, a demand, a carriage –


A dream can be all these, or simply mean salvage.




For me a dream is freedom


Freedom to spread my wings and fly.


The moment where I can breathe in the golden dust


And transform into something magnificent.




With the light of perseverance guiding me


Let the world come forth and see-


That I will attain my dreams,


And they will always live within me.




For without my dreams I am nothing.


An empty shell, which without its sustenance is cracking.


For my dreams are my breath, blood and sweat –


My dreams are my bread.


Maalika Kazia

Tuesday 11 February 2014

The Damned



                                                                      The Damned


A free spirit, an untethered heart
                                                                     Soaring above the larks.
                                                           Waiting to spread its wings and fly,
                                                       Higher than the unbinding crystalline sky


 Yet with eyes so fresh and mind so bright
                                                                Her wings are torn and battered,
                                                                Sitting alone; her life shattered.
                                       Before her nothing she see’s…beside her, loneliness breathes.


 A little heart beating inside her,
                                                   Caressing her emotions with tiny palpitations.
                                                              A new life blooming within her,
                                                  Embellishing her with motherhoods coronations.


 Ever so softly, her heart melts
                                                 To sing to the tune of her newly formed angel
                                                   How can she murder this innocent stranger?
                                                     But if she should, two lives will be taken…


 That of her seraph and that of her spirit… Mangled by the judgment of humankind, crushed by the weight of judging eyes, stomped by the cruelty of sneering smiles…




Maalika Kazia

Wednesday 5 February 2014

Spirit


Spirit


Never cease, never stop.

Never break, never drop.

Never think you’re not good enough for what you desire:

Because everything you will shall transpire.


Don’t break, don’t crack,

Don’t fall, don’t snap.

And if you do, I’ll be there to pick you.

I’ll never let you go; I’ll never let you lose.


I’ll always be your guide and your contesting spirit.

I’ll never give up, and I’ll not let you give in.

When hope is lying in his grave while you sit crying,

I’ll resurrect him with my eternal light shining.


I’ll let you cry, I’ll bear your bile.

I’ll let you wreak with fear and pain convoluting in your mind.

But I’ll never give up, never give in:

Because I am: your spirit from within.

Maalika Kazia

Monday 27 January 2014

Dear Wanderer


Dear Wanderer


And then I think to myself
Oh seeker of freedom, what is it you truly seek?
What is this novelty which you desire; that in your environment cannot transpire?
How is it that you find something so lacking on the outside?
When in reality what is missing is from the inside.
Let your eyes rove the horizon Wanderer;
And set upon the rising sun - Which glows astonishingly each day
No matter from which corner of the world, see it you may.
It calls to you does it not Wanderer?
It says: Here I am, can you not see?
I do not seem to want to go anywhere -
For at once – I am everywhere
Let your inner spirit loose dearest Wanderer
For it will set you free…
It will shine through the entire globe
In one moment of pure ecstasy.


Maalika Kazia

Sunday 26 January 2014

Hi!

Hello everyone!
Welcome to my blog
Story Time is all about taking out just a minute from your crazy, hectic shedule and indulging in a read. I love to write and explore different topics through short stories and poems. (Also expect a couple of rants now and again!)
If you enjoy reading a story just as much as I do and allowing the words to weave a web of another world around you, then this is the place for you!

Welcome to the world of words,

by Maalika

:)

x