THE POET’S HAVEN – ‘T H E . G R E Y’ by Anotida Jacob Mbereko

ANOTIDA Jacob Mbereko, also known as AJ Tha Wildflower 🥀 (ajthawildflower929🥀), is an eighteen-year-old young man hailing from Chitungwiza. Known for his quiet demeanor, he spent his childhood moving from place to place, forming few connections outside his family. 

In his early years, a friend encouraged him to express himself. Initially skeptical, he decided to give it a try. What started as a short paragraph blossomed into several, revealing a surprising depth of thought and emotion for someone so reserved. 

Over time, poetry has become more than a mere hobby for AJ. It has evolved into a necessity, a means of staying true to himself each day. The words he leaves unspoken accumulate, threatening to consume him from the inside. 

Thus, he turns to poetry as his outlet, a way to release the thoughts and feelings that otherwise remain trapped within. His journey underscores the transformative power of self-expression and the importance of finding one's voice. Poetry, for AJ, is not just an art form, but a lifeline.

T H E . G R E Y

AJ Tha Wild Flower🥀

The dirty little images

She plants inside my head

Really make it hard for me to pray.

Almost every second

When I'm away from you

I find myself existing in The Grey,

That place between reality and fantasy,

A place between heaven and earth.

It's a place where the air smells like you

So I know you're never far.

A place where I never feel lonely

Because you're always in my heart.

Time stands still

Except for the two of us.

An innocent sigh

Or a look from just the perfect angle

Could melt my heart

And give birth to the darkest of desires.

You lay your lips on mine

And I'm reminded that, darling, you are an angel

And Man was not created to experience euphoria such as this.

Words cannot express the effect your body has over me

But I try, regardless.

It's because I, too, want to understand how this chemistry works.

You kiss me,

And my blood boils,

Ready to take all of you.

Every atom aching for the taste of you.

It's more or less like physics,

The way I'm drawn to you.

Pulling me in close

But not close enough to claim all of you.

So I retreat to The Grey,

Where gravity is nonexistent

And we walk on water.

Where I can hold you

For the pure sake of holding you

Not out of the fear of what I would do to you

If I looked into your eyes,

If I looked at your body

And gave in to my own desires.

In The Grey,

Where nature doesn't have rules

And love doesn't have a limit.

Where kissing you in the street isn't insane

Because we're the only ones in it

And I can tell you I love you

And you don't need to say it back...