Friday from the Archives: “kwansaba crown” a poem by Gideon Young with art by Dare Coulter in NCLR 2021
Gideon Young has continued to grow and inspire as a poet since his second place win in our 2020 Applewhite Poetry Prize contest. His recent book, released earlier this spring, Griots: Keepers of the Story was called “an excellent collection of haibun by the five fine poets and members of the well-known Carolina African American Writers’ Collective.”
His first poem for us, “kwansaba crown” was written for his son and is a powerful blessing and protection passed from parent to child. Coulter’s accompanying painting is the perfect visual expression of Young’s prayer of “my blood near yours forever i know/this world sings you were born flying.”
We were lucky to hear Young read the piece live at the North Carolina Writers Conference last month, accompanying his piece with live flute music. Here are the first three stanzas.
kwansaba crown
this country says you were born flying
in the face of its oldest rule –
brown and loved. we lift you up
cradle your warm face to our faces
the murmur and spark of your skin
your blood crossed over ocean and swung
the lash. your wings gold and fire
…
lash your wings with gold and fire
invent fine knots that have no names
tie them snug around your green bones
this world wants to watch you fray
won’t warn you the term for loop
is eye. an eye that slips is
called noose. you keep you in view
…
our name anew, keep you in view
pray the spirits of our spiral cells
their hope tall drums’ tight deep boom
battle dance of spun blood toward light
each jitter red drop an elder’s eye
under your skin their buzz a blue
ancient chorus hums power in your moves
Read the entire piece on ProQuest and add the 2021 issue to your colletion at home.
