Here lies the cradle of civilization
Yoruba civilization at least
And like all ancient civilizations
Disaster struck after a brief era of prosperity
And made a once revered city
A mess of systematic backwardness
Sons and daughters dispersed
As you went on an irreversible skid
Down the chasm of crumbled kingdoms
Yet they retain a fragile nostalgic connection
That grows weaker as time strolls
In loving memory of your myths
Ife is condemned to perpetual mourning
The forgotten Yoruba city
The home the indigenes rejected
Whose greatest asset is its decaying monuments
And shortsighted spirituality
Ife watched stubbornly
As new cities took its place
Ibadan became a colossal mass
Lagos an economic giant
Abeokuta a literary hub
Even Osogbo and Akure has surpassed it
Only Ado-ekiti remains a benign offspring
Ife parades its rich history arrogantly
Claiming a medieval superiority
By right of firstborn
Unknowingly selling out the right
By doing nothing worth of a first
It ignores modernity
And dependent on obsolete traditions and solutions
Here lies the future of Ife
An archaeological site
Destroyed by the people’s refusal
To adapt to a changing world.
