Many years ago my forefathers left their homeland to start better lives
Lured by arkatis whom painted a perfect picture of nothing but lies
Some were forced to come & some came by choice of their own
With promises to their families, they'd be rich when they came back home
But the sad reality began to surface as their voyage began
Here, they were all put together, not even a curtain to separate women & man
These women whom were accustomed to covering their faces, now filled with so much humiliation
Their bodies bumped into each other when the ship swayed, no one could control the situation
Sickness, disease, suicide, which ever way death came
All still ended up been thrown into the water grave
They still had hope that things will be better once they arrived in Natal
But life proved to be nothing but hell
The free food that was promised dhal, salt, maize meal, rice, they received weekly
The free"homes" promised were small, cold & dark, leaking roofs brought nothing but illness & misery
They toiled in the fields where sugar cane grew tall and sweet
But their own lives were a bitter grief
Their skin scorched under the extreme heat of the sun
Blistered fingers continued to work or get beaten for work not done
They faced so much of injustice yet they dare not complain
For that brought even more cruelty & even more pain
But despite ALL the challenges, we Indians proved to be invincible
Nothing came on a platter for us, but we are still successful
In a country with so many different races, cultures, languages & traditions
We work twice as hard to preserve ours so it will never be forgotten
Our forefathers may have left India but they also brought a piece of her too
& When I look at these images, I so deeply wish they knew
When they took that first step onto this land, they were stepping right into the pages of history
Unknowingly becoming our GREATEST LEGACY

South African Heritage Day
2020

©2020 Vireka Kemraj