By Energy Mavaza
Driven further beyond the Limpopo river for economic solace and a manly hunt, Carla-Ann Makumbe always journeys with her magic pen of poetic inspiration. A mother, with a lot of responsibilities to a beautiful daughter, saw it befitting for her to share her story with the world through narrative verses. What captures the yearning poetic hearts to her compiled anthology is the motive that drives Carla-Ann to pen down her experiences in the 34 poem collection to Partricia, to love and to her fellow feminines who might be submerged by the murky waters of masculinity.
Carla-Ann was born and bred in Gweru where her passion for the art was nurtured at Word is Bond. She has poems published in Loud Thoughts anthology and The Tsonga Mukololo one poem project. She is also a spoken word poet whose works were exhibited at The Freedom of Ink in South Africa where she is currently based.
According to Carla-Ann her new self published anthology of poem titled, “And to Partricia: I had to man up” is a predominantly collection of long stansared verses that speak to women, and for women and social commentry of journies taken by mothers in Zimbabwe whose motherhood is defined by diversed backgrounds, culture, experiences, expectations and other varied social terrains.
When asked on what motivated to leave a mark on poetic high ways she said, “…the stories of unsung heroes around me, my story in which I consider myself a victor and the processes that I and the people who inspired me go through.”
Truely there is no better inspiration than the one that comes from deep within. As for Carla-Ann it came from deep within her womb.
As much as a mother yearn for the best out of her daugter, Carla-Ann muses on her entrèe piece “The worst stories to tell are my own…” for ” My heart in shards, a mirror shattered on the ground…” This opening salvo simply an admission in the authors note that regardless of a murky background and marred experience as a mother, her stories are worth sharing for a stitch in time is always a best advice.
Using her exceptional knack for intuitive observation Carla-Ann in her title poem “And to Patricia: I had to man up” unpacks the motherly love that is deeper than any comprehension.”
They found me in a corner, drained to find you happiness…”. The opening lines to the poem oozes with passion and desire sipping from a loving mom who divinely dreams nothing but the utmost best for her “heartbeat.”
With a bit of allusion from the poem, The Waste Land (1922) by T.S Elliot, Carla-Ann in her piece Motherland Dirge, could barely afford to hinge her patriotic love to the broken and shattered motherland from the raveges of corruption, hate, immorality and unleached patriachy. She highlighted in each of the 3 stanzas the rhetoric question “Shall the motherland rise from the ashes?” Fostering hope to the fellow Zimbabwean hearts.
Just like other women who involuntarily ended up doing double parenting task by maning up to their kids, journeying further abroad for their kids sustainance. The anthology zooms close and outlines the plights and pain of mothers fighting harder for their children. “And with the distance” is a poem crafted by the bleeding heart, melting with desire of a motherhood yearning to be a present to her children. She mused, “There is a hole in my heart, which grows deeper with each minute i’m not with you.” If only nature could find a way to draw close motherly love being hindered by space, but praise be to God for the pictures of imagination captured in her memory.
In the midst of the motherly passionate poetic expressions, Carla-Ann is not subtle in encording the plight of an African woman in our society. Through her deft emotional oxymorons, the poem Thirsty Waters zooms close to the drawning plights of an African woman whose tag is to provide “…satisfaction.” to the ever thirsty masculine. Her imegery switch from a submerged and drowning African women to the abandonment and neglect of her feelings like “…a cactus in the desert.” Does nothing but walking one into the narrow dispondency pathways of gender where her dreams are “… trampled at sexes.”
The book zooms in to the obstacles women and does justice in attempting to address them. It would a worthy read to just grab a copy and peruse thrugh Carla-Ann Makumbe’s anthology , And to Partricia: I had to man up.
Comments
About Author
