(Is this love by Bob Marley plays at the background while I write…)
Kelisha, after talking to you and telling you how I feel out of touch from the poetry world
I sat in my library as my mind took a journey to a river of alphabets, fetching them to form words and purifying them to form poems
Here is one.
Here is a West African loving an East African
Malawian, Nigerian…. How do we relate?
If Biafra existed I would say we relate by the colors on our flags.. Red, black and green
But no, Biafra is a story about my people I don’t wish to tell you
(Bob Marley sings…. “I want to love you….and treat you righ.. Nods head as I write)
Here is Igbo loving Chichewa
chikondi, ịhụnanya… Even our pronunciation and spelling of love are different
I really want to look into the eyes of your father and say “ndimakonda mwana wanu wamkazi”
But i feel my Igbo tongue will fail me
Here is an African loving an African
We are one, sharing same beautiful root
Sharing same beautiful color
Kelisha, lets focus on our similarities and the love we feel for each other
Today, I decide not to write a poem talking about your beautiful African face or perfectly shaped lips
No, I decide to talk about an African loving an African
About me, loving you.
(Bob Marley sings… I want to love you, and treat you right… I want to love you every day and every night… Music fades)
