Irene M. Mubeho
Republic of Rwanda
Biography collected and written by Angela Azibera

Irene M. Mubeho is a female Rwandese by nationality and is currently living in the Dzaleka refugee camp in Malawi. Her family came to Malawi in the year of 2002. She was born on January 5, 2003 and was raised in the camp. Currently she is a university student, studying at one of the universities here in Malawi.

Irene started writing poems in 2016 when she was in secondary school. She loves poetry because every time she would hear poems since she was young, it would touch her heart. Growing up, every time she would hear her age mates recite poems, she wanted to be like them. There came a time where she was motivated and thought of giving it a try. Her English teacher complimented and encouraged her to continue writing.

About the poems she shared, to begin with “Who Shall I Blame”, Irene wrote because she realized that students tend to blame teachers, friends, and other things for their own laziness and irresponsibility. As a result she thought of writing this poem to let her fellow students understand that they are responsible for the outcomes of the choices they make in their lives: be it not doing well in school, being withdrawn from school, and many other choices. They hold themselves to blame. For the second one “It Flew and Never Returned”, her main focus in this poem was time. People in general tend to forget that time flies and can never be retrieved once it’s gone. This explains some of the consequences that come as a result of misusing time. She wants people not to waste their time and come to regret it later when it’s too late.

To all the readers, especially young people who are still in school, she encourages them to pay for their lives properly in terms of their studies and time management. They should learn to accept mistakes and shortfalls, learn from them and strive to improve. To everyone in general, life is too short to waste time and live a life of regret. There is so much to do that can improve our living rather than wasting time on regrets.

WHO SHALL I BLAME?

Shall I think and say
That there is someone on my way
Who makes me fail
Shall I blame the school
Or shall I call myself a fool?

Shall I blame the given time for studying
Or myself using it for chatting
Shall I blame my worries
Or my friends’ stories
Which I give all my attention
Than exams preparation

Shall I blame the school rules
By saying that they are abusive
Or shall I blame my bad morals
Making me fail to obey such simple rules
Shall I blame the punishments given daily
Or myself for failing to be obedient

Shall I blame the one who gave me wisdom
Or myself for refusing to use it
Thinking that I am in my own kingdom
Shall I blame those who suspended
Or my friends who pretended
As if they are giving me advice
Yet they are teaching me vice

Shall I blame the teachers quickness
Or my brain’s slowness
Shall I blame the examiners
Who shall I blame?