Muhamad ali

(For Mahammad Ali: 1942-2016)
He once stood in defiance of history.
His alertness in the ring defied logic
At the age that he sought to retire,
The dimming lights of malady set in.
He had an invisible firewall in front of opponents,
Always keeping a comfortable distance
Like a wizard, he was a butterfly and also a bee,
He snapped his jabs and levelled the bullies.
He outpointed and outwitted his foes,
Perfected his hit-and-run magic,
Pounded and smouldered them in this game,
Like no one before and none hence.
He wasn’t dominant with barbaric brawn
Smiled like an angel, devoid of pride,
He danced in the ring and brought the cash
And bade farewell to poverty.
The territory he occupied was way beyond Boxing.
This man, our myth of yesterday,
No more flaunts what he had spawned,
He sailed in lonely waters,
In the bruising twilight zone –
Then God came and took him home.
Orok Duke
Duke Town