Borne in explosion at the lure of gold

Seducing men young and old

A yellow speck amidst a sea of brown sand

And so the world knew the Witwatersrand

During chaos and folly the seeds were sown

For flashes of brilliance; a destiny your own

 

Shovels and pics punctured the land

Africans toiled; their bosses were fanned

The dust settled after the last speck was found

The gold-men were amazed as they looked around

The underground wealth had not been depleted

It was all around them; a town was completed

 

In rapid growth, your borders were enveloped

In place of trees and veld, buildings developed

Your people impetuous, they erected a school

“Quick, hurry up! The mind is a tool.”

 

There they learnt how to forget your past

But in verse, you knew your story would last

Today more than a town –  home to the greats

To athletes and artists and Charlize in The States

 

Life is now gentle in the City of Lakes

But there is one at your heart, and not by mistake

A mountain-sentinel wise and old

He reminds us that first, you were a city of gold.

 

Featured image: Sunset over Homestead Dam by matt_e sourced from Flicker under the Creative Commons license 2.0