COVID 19

ANTHOLOGY OF BELIZEAN POEMS

All Rights Reserved Leo A. Obando PH.D
 INDEX
Preface.......................................................................................................................................................................1.1

Dedication..................................................................................................................................................................1.2

Belize..........................................................................................................................................................................1.3

Land of the Free..........................................................................................................................................................1.4

To Live In Freedom....................................................................................................................................................1.5

Mr. President...............................................................................................................................................................1.6

To Blame or Not To Blame.........................................................................................................................................1.7

The School...................................................................................................................................................................1.8

The Bus........................................................................................................................................................................1.9

The Drug.......................................................................................................................................................................2.0

The Sacred Sin..............................................................................................................................................................2.1

City Woman..................................................................................................................................................................2.2

The Farmer.....................................................................................................................................................................2.3

Loving Father.................................................................................................................................................................2.4

Grateful I Am..................................................................................................................................................................2.5

He or I..............................................................................................................................................................................2.6

Beautiful Woman..............................................................................................................................................................2.7

Crier Baby.........................................................................................................................................................................2.8

Cayo..................................................................................................................................................................................2.9

Let It Go............................................................................................................................................................................3.0

The Undesired Baby Covid 19..........................................................................................................................................3.1

I Need Paper.....................................................................................................................................................................3.2

What Eyes.........................................................................................................................................................................3.3

Listen To Her....................................................................................................................................................................3.4

The Bar.............................................................................................................................................................................3.5

Numbers...........................................................................................................................................................................3.6

Love..................................................................................................................................................................................3.7

The Storm.........................................................................................................................................................................3.8
 Preface

The feelings expressed in this Anthology of Belizean Poems marks a new stage in
Belize's literary development. The intention of this work is to present the daily
memories and experiences of Belize, looking at the critical aspects of the social,
economic and political challenges. Today, especially young people face a rapid
changing world where drugs, pornography and crime are part of their daily lives. It
is my intention to have this collection of Belizean poems become a part of Latin
American and Caribbean literature. In this collection of poems, pleasant
experiences of people are portrayed. I hope you like and enjoy it, sharing it with
family and friends. The impact of COVID-19 worldwide as a deadly virus will
certainly change lifestyles, way of thinking and doing things. Being on the look
out... God Bless the world!!!
 Dedication

Dedicated to my family and friends; young Belizeans that work tirelessly every
day with hope, and love for a prosperous Belize. The greatness of Belize depends
on you and me and those who want to make Belize their permanent home. May
God, The Creator of Heaven and Earth bless us today and always. Thanks to
Brenda M. Casimiro my Executive Secretary for her endless support in the writing
and publications of the poems.
 Belize

Country full of Tenderness

Covering the air with Freshness;

The Sea, the Mountains and the Plains,

All enjoy your beauty.

The sun that rises from the East

Warms and nourishes your people;

The rain that falls with the storm,

Refreshes the mind of your children.

Look at the rising Sun,

Quickly open the door to them;

The Farmer and the Student,

They are your People.

Every drop that comes from your chest,

In the struggle, day and night;

East to West, North to South,

Make Belize one Nation!

 Land of the Free
Belize... Sea and rich Land,

By the working hands of your children;

Strong and honest men,

Sea and blessed Land!

Sea of many colours,

Which expresses your beauty,

With sincerity and frankness:

Land of the Barrier Reef and the Caribbean Sea.

Here your civilization began,

Of natural beauty and intellectual wealth

Growing your national strength,

Here your civilization began,

Your eyes can see what our hands have done.

Land of the Free!

The Present is yours,

The Future of our children,

Peace and Freedom,

Work and Justice

We all proclaim.
 To Live in Freedom
Life is everything when you live in Freedom.

It's nothing, when living in fear paralyzes critical thinking.

It is all, when living in despair,

Become a struggle for a national identity.

To fight for freedom is to create social awareness.

The destiny of a country is meaningful,

When, you can change the image of a nation that is in transition.

Power as such is the beginning of the end.

Democracy must foster social progress;

Their right to participate in national elections,

Searching for better standards and quality of life,

The Laws only exist for those who uphold them,

The child is innocent,

But in real life some mentors teach them to disobey.

Let us not lose sight that in democracy,

Everyone is a winner.

Wise leaders can return to power,

When, they have the support of their people.

 Mr. President

Mr/ Madam President

The way you dress You are the same;

What changes is how you see things.

Mr. Priest/Priestess

The way you dress, you are the same

What changes is the way you say things.

Mr/ Ms. Beggar

The way you dress, you are the same

What changes is the way you ask for things

Mr/Madam Teacher

The way you dress, you are the same

What changes is your attitude of things

Mr. King/ Queen

The way you dress, you are the same

What you don’t understand is the time in which you live.

 To Blame or Not To Blame
Guilty or Not.

For being my friend.

When the idea was born,

Who were you to say, No?

Jesus has said,

That original sin does not exist,

Since he die for it

So the debt has been paid.

You are guilty, he said

Knowing that I was dishonest and unfaithful,

You lied for me yesterday.

He said... that sin does not exist

So why did he cheat on me yesterday?

 The School
They sent me to school,

Not knowing why;

I studied day and night,

The little things of life.

With the whip behind my back,

And the book helping me,

I was educated a citizen;

About the real world.

Leaving school,

A bureaucrat I wanted to be;

I search for a job,

So I could keep myself.

What I learnt in fifteen years,

I forgot in one day.

A rebel I became,

Confusing knowledge with mundane things.

 The Bus
I took a bus one day

And how surprised i was

So many people i saw,

Over crowding the passage way.

Maga people, easily entered;

But fat people struggled.

In a sudden stop

The bus overturned;

Passengers suffered deadly.

Advancing a hundred meters, Maria got off;

A hundred feet ahead, Pedro came off.

In twenty miles, there were a hundred stops;

Five hours in ten square miles.

The man on my right,

A cigarette smoke;

The smoke spread to all those who boarded. In seconds,

The smoke began to talk.

Je, Je, Je, Je, everyone enjoys it!

 The Drug

The young man, that smokes weed,

Gets a fascinating high,

Seeks a pleasant escape,

That gradually kills him.

Life is thrown out the window,

With quadruple accelerated steps;

He/she protest the injustices of life,

Very sorry that he/she has done so.

Society seem not to care a penny,

Under the blue sky,

Where the drug is easily found,

With religious comfort;

He/ she cry and no one cares.

 The Sacred Sin
The error of my life was not to be born?

If I multiplied the positive and minus the negatives,

I realized that life is worth living.

Having born in a Godly family,

Is a lot of pride, no deception.

The schools that educated me,

Is proof, is history.

To be part of a Royal Family,

Validates my existence.

If testifying is to recount,

I confess without ill.

To that lady that smiled at me,

When I was born.

I tell you young people,

Of what God gave me.

I thank the couple- Mother and Father,

Who... love, understood and cared for me,

They gave me love without distinction.

Thank you loving Parents!!

 City Woman
Urban women are actualized;

If you ask them what they know about travel,

They respond... of the beach?

Don't talk to me.

Urban women are educated;

If you speak to them about abortion,

They Responds... HIV is contagious,

And immoral.

urban women are beautiful,

If you speak to them about fashion,

They paint your nails with a broom;

Making you pay for each colour.

Urban women are free;

If you write them a beautiful letter,

They answer –what about the flowers with love?

 The Farmer
Farmer, open your eyes,

look for new ways;

adjust your sail,

for the wind could lead you astray.

Farmer, your fields are full of colours,

the food you produce, feeds a multitude,

Not knowing that the field is gold,

you sell and spend without fear.

Your family and children wait,

the rewards that the field provide;

the machinery you long for,

Does not appear in the dawn.

The years pass, they come and go;

Your bones are exhausted;

The harvests are less,

Why don't you cry?

 Loving Pa and Ma
Dear Pa and Ma,

I am the proud image of yourself,

the soul of that admirable couple,

from whom I got my name.

Mother Holy Mother,

you are blessed among women,

for being the first to bear me in your womb,

I love you so dearly mother.

John my dear John,

You are a father, grandfather,

uncle and friend,

your children are proud of you now and always.

Lula my dear Lula,

You are a mother, grandmother,

And friend,

your children are proud of you now and always.

 Grateful I am

My Woman and wife,

I thank you for the love you share with me,

The freshness of your touch,

The sweetness of your lips,

My woman and wife.

as a child you became a woman;

You explored The High and Low of Life,

At times losing course and direction,

but firm and confident,

finding the man that made you a woman.

 He or I
Love of two, me or you?

Love from afar,

is like a fools smile,

I look for new Friend.

Friends true friends,

winter sun, worth wild friends,

Love and pain, is not modest,

Love and love, it is not error.

Love and hate, Holds opposite ends,

love of horror, Love of pain,

is love of tears,

Love of friends,

I’ll marry you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 Beautiful Woman
Kiss your sunny side up lips,

I accept to loose,

Those sweet moments of yesterday.

I now understand,

What your lovely eyes said to me,

The moment I lost you.

Your fragile body like a paper,

Force me to lose sight of you ,

Pretty woman.

I accept the challenge,

not knowing how to lose,

you genuine love,

you gave me openly.

 Crier Baby
I have a crier baby,

Whose baba drips,

screaming and jumping,

he calls every ones Attention.

one, two, three, buckle Andres shoe,

four, five, six, pickup sticks,

seven, eight, nine, he plays in line.

he screams at night,

creating fear in me,

Papa, Mama,

I want baba.
 Cayo

Cayo,

your name is sensational,

Your people, your rivers

and mountains are exceptional.

the Macal, Mopan, and Belize old river,

makes life and biodiversity;

an environmental platform,

for natural life.

Your marimbas,

And guitars,

Mayan language,

are photographs of your civilization.

 Let It Go
Being young

is synonymous of strong emotions,

Living the adrenaline

that stimulates the brain.

Walking through the darkness

He pretends to be a superman,

He knows everything,

Pretending to be a wise man.

he has a thousand answers for each question;

problems without solutions ,

loitering is abundant,

he is selfish and self centred.

Being brute and divine,

He calls for divinity,

Emotion without reason, measures,

Thinking of fame, that the world will not end.

 The Undesired Baby Covid-19

Covid 19 is born today,

Is an unwanted baby girl,

Is mortal and contagious,

and is passed from human to human.

Covid 19 satisfies a few people,

She jumps, curls and fly in the air,

Infecting people in China and Belize,

Who cough day and night.

High fever and diarrhea,

Have the doctors going crazy,

Searching for the vaccine,

Without finding it.

Rosa dies in San Pedro,

Nico gets infected in Cayo,

There is quarantine and curfew in Belize and Corozal,

Belizean protest the injustice applied.

 I Need Paper

When I have a lot of paper,

very little I write.

I know that if I had a lot of paper,

I could err a thousand times.

So innocent is life,

Sinless at birth.

Without scars, without guilt

Without original sin, at the start.

If it is sinful from birth,

Why did Jesus die on the cross then?

When a child understands the value of sin

Daily he questions the value life.

Life is like a book, the more pages you have,

The more mistakes you make.

 What Eyes

In your tired eyes,

I can see hard work for many years.

Capturing the years,

In your black curly hair.

Depicting a hundred years

Of punishing times

That captures the night,

When you dream at times.

Tired of suffering

Longing for youth.

 Listen to Him/ Her

Gentleman, Listen carefully to her story

Don't force her to lie,

Maybe she wants to express,

her intense emotions.

Gentlewoman, Listen to his heart beat

This expresses his love,

Two lovers in search of each other.

No borders or time gentlewoman,

Will wait for that kiss

that erupts in just a moment.

 The Bar

In the Corner of the bar,

Jaime was sitting

A ball of smoke was his crown,

He sweared with every drink he had.

A talkative Friend

Said great things of him

as dollar by dollar he spent.

His woman would wake up dearly

Get up Jaime,

It’s time to go home.

 Numbers

One – two,

Me or you?

Three – four,

the dog or the cat?

Five – six

The Judge's Foot?

Seven – eight

The master rod?

Nine – ten

A big fat hen?

Eleven – twelve

Who is to blame?

Thirteen – fourteen

Why are you angry?

Fifteen – Sixteen

Speaks Well

Seventeen – eighteen

Many achievements

Nineteen – twenty

There is No Bad sick.

 Love

If love Is the masterpiece,

that joins uneven parts,

why blame the man who fell in love

while walking on the streets.

Is love the contrary to having children,

Suffering jealousy and giving kisses?

When i say i love you

Is it true?

When loosing the one you love

Distorts the reality,

of the woman you love.

 The Storm

The storm is coming,

The hurricane is here.

Let’s care for our rivers,

For fresh water are becoming scares.

Don’t burn the forest,

For the sky will get dark.

The ozone layers will deplete itself,

Climate change is a real phenomenon

Higher temperatures will break us apart,

Planet mars we shall occupy,

Let’s put the garbage where it belongs.

The mighty oceans will overflow,

The great glaciers will melt apart,

Low laying countries will sink below

Let’s take action or the world will end.

The hurricane is here

Let’s put COVID 19 in its place.

 Writer’s Biography
Leodegario Antonio Obando was born in the beautiful town of San Ignacio, El
Cayo, October 2, 1961. His parents Ms. Eulalia Obando ocano and Juan Obando
Señor. He spent his teenage years at the mouth of the rivers: Macal, Mopan and
Belize Old River. Where he lived the experience of a rancher; milking cows, riding
horses, fishing, swimming and hunting. He finished his elementary education at the
Santa Familia R.C. School. He left for the Stann Creek district at the age of 13,
where he spent most of his adolescent life and lives today. He graduated from
Stann Creek Ecumenical High School, Belize Technical College sixth form,
BELCAST, Escuela Normal Superior, Mexico City, University of Chile, and
Complutense University of Madrid, Spain. He worked as a teacher for 17 years at
Sacred Heart College, St. Johns College Junior college, Stann Creek Ecumenical
high and junior college. As a consultant he worked for the UNHCR, Obando
International Business Consultancy. He founded S.P.E.C.T.E in 1996 and is
presently the Director. He is married and has two children.