The Black Badge of Africa Gift Mudzingwa I was born with the scent
of wild flowers in the air,
The smell of wood-fires,
And the cooking pot.
My first tears flowed
from the sting of smoke,
From the pain of the thorns
in my naked small feet.
How I hated, at first,
The long hours, herding cattle,
But loved the hills,
And the river - when it gave me fish!
I learned to listen
to the songs of the birds,
To watch the colours
of the dawn and sunset.
I learned to love
The land that gave me
My own black badge.
The black badge of Africa,
QUESTIONS
1. Where is the poem set? Provide two sets of evidence from the poem that support the
setting
13]
2. What does the black badge symbolize in this poem?
(1)