The African Spirit Knows - A Poem by Ada Amara

THE AFRICAN SPIRIT KNOWS

There is an intangible but very palpable beauty and essence to African culture.

Something that's breathed, felt, perceived

Something that envelops you even as it flows and flutters through you

Something that speaks of value, pride and peace in tunes that only the spirit can understand

Something that, once felt, penetrates and molds you

Something that stays and never leaves you, but reverberates through you no matter where you are

One cannot box it up, bottle it up or transfer it

It can not be plucked or taken

But through openness of spirit and purity of heart

One can share it with those pure and open enough to receive it

The African spirit knows pride

The African spirit knows peace

The African spirit knows dignity, anchorage and heritage

The African spirit knows the magnanimous love of a mother - through culture and through nature

The African spirit knows things that cannot be plucked or taken - things that can only be shared with those open.