we dug our country
ayòdéjì israel
first, we gathered the flesh of the labourers. humans
are heavier than wood. we crawled into the damage
of their bodies and nourished the remnants
of their skulls with every touch of affection. the last
honour you can give to the dead is a grip of warmth
and silence. so we gathered the flesh of the labourers.
we dug again and found love. see how they held themselves
in unity. it is lively to perish together as a country. it is safe
to have your body dismantled by a chisel from your home.
so we dug again and found love. we drew our hands nearer
and lifted the bricks that pressed some bodies against
another. there was rupture and chaos. there was rupture
where there was to be chaos. our country stood
upon its inhabitants. our country became a god and sat
upstairs and placed its legs on its own people. and then
there was chaos. it is not easy to survive a war where
kinsmen fight one another. the pillars that upheld our country
developed fault and fought each other. so we drew our hands
nearer and lifted the bricks that pressed some bodies
against another. we receded their blood until we were tired.
the earth was glad to dry their lotion. is blood not natural
too? until the time came and our country began to ask
for our own blood. who would have saved the saviours?
so we receded their blood until we were tired. second,
we died. we have used every pinch of our blood to fight
for the growth of our dear country, who are we to denial it
all of it when it is needed the most to fight for its own downfall?
Ayòdéjì Israel, a poet, writer and editor, is a Pushcart Prize nominee. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in Channel Magazine, Eunoia Review, Counterclock, Ake Review, Defunct Magazine, OneArtPoetry, Livina Press, The River, Nude Bruce Review, The Bitchin Kitsch & elsewhere. You can find him on Twitter @Ayo_einstein.
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