BETTER AT DAWN
If I am going home tomorrow
Let it be at dawn
Before I have heard the cock crow
Thrice at noon
But not at dusk
After I have seen lurking shadows on the walls
Neither in the night
When a knock on the door
Shall hang my soul over roasting fire
And set me on a precipice
Let it be at dawn
For then, I shall go fulfilled.
Should I not at dawn
I shall have to return
To settle the score
For I never forgot an injury
Never forgave an insult.
To pay the debts I owe
For I was never dishonest
Then, I shall go in peace
At dawn I must depart
So let me go – at dawn
After I have traveled around this world
Eaten all the delicacies
Drank from the wells of Love, Unity and Justice
And tasted all the sweet wine of forgiveness
When I have found my lost treasure
When I have cast all my miseries into the sea
It shall be utter dawn
And I shall be gone.
By Catherine Kemigisha
This poem won second prize in the first ever Beverley Nambozo Poetry Award in 2009, the first poetry award of its kind for Ugandan women. Catherine Kemigisha won a cash prize of 150 USD. This award was proudly sponsored by Uganda Women Writers’ Association (FEMRITE), WordAlive Publishers, Uganda clays Limited and Uganda Health Marketing Group (UHMG).