The verse will wander like the
homeless into my embrace
& I'll welcome them with the knife
of my tongue. Yes the pain was there
yesterday; shattered as glass,
bone white silence peering through
the window trying to gather dust
into familiar forms. Gods the count
multiplied & ignorance grew its own
multicolored wings. How I wanted
to kick a ball through a post,
scream into the sepulchre of mud
where puddles used to catch the sun.
Yes, I lifted a keg of groundnut oil,
sloppily down the stairs, slipped
on the rain, skid to a stop before
the brittle white of moonlight.
Where are all the faces of my friends?
Where are all my lovers' limbs?
My arms are not enough to carry
my fear. My arms are not enough
to carry death. So I finger
the door knob & ask the raven
if the flood has ended, if I can
step out on to firm land? The raven
replies me you must learn to fly,
to mask laughter & tears, learn
to carry your trauma by yourself.
It is the only way you can wander
this song that the earth sings.
& when hunger greets my ribs with
its unrelenting cuts, what do I do?
So yes, I gathered my wings, masked
pain with terror, embraced my trauma
to myself and went to look for food.
This is my entry into pandemic poetry challenge. I was nominated by @trucklife-family. You can read the challenge post by @riverflows. I nominate @tarazkp and @moeknows to join this challenge.