The River Died – A Proud Heritage

The River Died – A Proud Heritage

By Felix Okoro

A man’s heritage is the sum of his inherited traditions, inherited spirituality, and inherited relationships. Add to this his acquired traditions, revealed spirituality, and acquired relationships and you’ll begin to understand the complexities that shape the human psyche. This mix is potent. It is effervescent; and, it is capable of the greatest good or the worst evil depending on how man shapes this creative potpourri.

Employed by a gifted, knowing artist, this mix becomes admirably charged, highly redolent, and spiritually renewing. It shows more poignantly the tragic-comic human hubris of the present as it evocatively paints the past. In poetry, it is highly lyrical and possesses such beauty of imagery and language that we begin to understand why poetry is regarded as the highest form of artistic expression.

Ken Ike’s poetry embodies the best of these traditions, weaving the past and present, myth, fable and immediate reality, spirituality and everyday occurrences, in one refreshing wholesome mix; thus, creating visual patterns and verbal fragrances that invite you, the reader and audience, to a world of poetic kinship.

His heritage is one conditioned by a rich, but fast-disappearing, culture; a knowing, revealing, spirituality; and, a wealthy tapestry of relationships across the canvass of life. That he transcribes all these with the aplomb of a Soyinka and the warmth of an Achebe is evidence that art truly is alive and well in our society, and that our new generation of writers will soar like Eneke, the intuitive bird.

The River Died is the literary harvest of a fruitful spirit!

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