For All That We Were

your body is a thousand fires that lustful eyes worship

and my tongue is a child in awe of danger —

reaching out, pulling back;

seeking the sultry delights of the chevron of your golden thighs

that gleam against brown sheets like the Abeokuta sunrise

I still hold the taste of you from the last time

on my tongue like an unspoken promise

my hands reeked of the fufu you made for lunch

with love in your heart; Ayinke, do you still think of me?

each day my hands learned your body anew

like an overeager cadet and his obsequious salute

at dawn while Iya Ibeji’s cockerel calls to the pigeon —

one early bird to another; my hands roam the mountain of your buttocks

inspecting every inch like a blind man on a treasure hunt

 

isn’t a madman’s fortune the well-conceived deed of time?

yesterday’s regal attires are now rags that clothe him

tell olowo Oke-Ilewo that wealth is a fickle whore

today he lays in her bosom, tomorrow another will

does he know that his second wife’s lover is also here in these dungeons?

accoutred in bitterness and brandishing nudity like a weapon

he spews curses he conceived in the dead of night

 

behind these bars, I have watched thirty and one sunrises

each dawn’s tantalizing song of freedom scorns me at dusk

and each dusk brings with it the bittersweet memories

of your earthy smell after a hard day’s toil

what saner insanity is there in this place of horror —

than solacing in a love lost in perpetuity?

so for all that we were, Ayinke, tell me:

do you still think of all we could have been?

 

Here’s a few things you might need to know! 

1. Abeokuta – is a town in Ogun State, Nigeria, renowned for its many brown roof houses and, of course, the Olumo Rock 

2. Fufu –  is a staple food, common in many countries in Africa. It is often made with cassava and green Plantain Flour. Its smell lingers on the hand long after it has been eaten.

3. Iya Ìbejì – Mother of twins. 

4 . olówó – a rich person 

5. Òkè-Ilewo – a  place in Abeokuta used fictitiously here, of course

6. Olówó Òkè-Ilewo – the rich man of Òkè-Ilewo 

7. Ayinke – a female Yorùbá name. 

 

Here’s two things you should also know:

1. I’m in search of a shorter blog address. thebrownroofcitywordsmith.wordpress.com is quite long. If you have any suggestions, please say something in the comment section, I’ll be most grateful.

2. If you love this poem, or any of my other poems anyway, please share with somebody. They might love it too!

Okay, three things. 😊

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