Many African children are fan-shaped,
little wonder why the sage would say,
“Mangoes don’t fall far from the tree.”

But most times we assume more use
of ourselves, make essence of our shape
and take away the heat of life
from our brothers’ faces.

Nigeria is one of such children,
a mother who pushed me out
from her womb and placed me upon
a sturdy bed called Edo.

I would learn in time
that the reason why we’re not all fans
lies in the choice we say “Oma” or “E wo” to.

When you see the moon
Come and take me by my hand
Walk us on the moonlit beach
Then sit us on the sand

Put your arms around me
And ask me what I see
I’ll say, the moon and its reflection
In the waves, upon the sea

You will tell me, I’m your moon
And so, forever will you be
My reflection in your heart
For what you mean to me

I will say, that’s why I love you
You make me glow at night
You will say, that’s why you love me
I am, the reflection from your light

BOEMS BY JA 510

Existing…..
In this grisly grotto of endless void
Shivering amidst turbulent thoughts..
…cold…..so cold….
Sightless…heedless…devoid of emotions
Mindful of the encroaching darkness
That would birth an expected despair

FEELINGS........

I feel his touch
In the dwindling heat of the setting sun
In the heavy fragrance of flowers bright
In the soft feel of the cool evening breeze

I feel his touch
In the flickering twinkle of a thousand stars
In the soft light of the half moon
In the gentle waves of calm seas

I feel his touch
In the unending paths leading to nowhere
In the warm beat of a lonely heart
In the undulating sway of dancing shadows

“Childhood only exists”
“While its innocence lives”
“In time, it is stripped away”
“By what, our invidious reasoning gives” WIZDUMBs by JA 223

When I was very young, some years before my teens
Before those wild ambitions, invaded all my dreams

I was naive, yet unafraid; my life was filled with awe
I ran and played, unperturbed, exploring things I saw

The first time mama whispered
she did so to my quiet soul.
Before me she was thunder,
a giver of words, whether
your ears had a mouth or not.

My eyes were soaked with a deep
green sheen fed by the foliage,
across the fence, pulling me.
Then she tapped my toned shoulders,
spun me that I might be saved.

Till tall ambitions my son,
dreams wild and iroko-strong.
Want more, watch the great farmers,
But while you long for freedom
found within another man’s farm

I stared out the window
My brain, completely disengaged
No thoughts, no emotions
But a war was being waged

I could not move or even think
Stood lifeless, as I gazed
But, inside my brain
This awful darkness lazed

Outside the window, light
It seemed so warm and pure
Still, inside my muddied head
A madness did me lure

I could not raise my voice
Could not, say a word
That evil’s lock on me
Seemed to be assured

It had been my usual swirl
down the riverbed
and unto the deep of our pearls.
Today, I swept my cares
behind my share of pearls,
pared mind from heart to see
the deep - my deep - open
to the frenzied welcome
of another swimmer.
I would try not to drown.

There are groans building up
within the cell of your belly.
Laughter, a first layer,
sleeps at the base of the column,
unafraid of who comes upon his back.
Disbelief holds hands
with an unlikely friend, faith. They
sat together in church last Sunday,
exchanging no glances, but today,
they sleep atop laughter; the church
becomes a cone upon your back
and you graze snaillike, saved again
from the hostility of homelessness.
Then comes the most recumbent,
the one who wouldn't sleep as well,

Have you ever seen a light
Streaking through the sky
Imagined it was someone’s life
That just came streaming by

And when the light had faded
Did it make you question why
We were put, on this earth
And then left here to die

Did you ever see a lightning strike
Felt the tremors from its thunder
Imagined it had pierced a heart
And ripped it all asunder

For such a force to manifest
Did it set your mind to wonder
Was our life here, meant to be
Or was it, just a blunder