Our Skins Tore Because We Gave Cactuses Warm Hugs
.
30 Oct 2022,
write two dates the average man in this country will never forget.
the lecturer demanded.
i penned down the obvious: 1, oct, 1960
& next, i penned down the most obvious: 20, oct, 2020.
tears wet the area of my paper i inked full stop.

to what do you compare a country killing herself? everywhere you go, look to the sky. i swear, you will see the blood of an infant
re-painting my country’s flag. & if you’re so afraid to die, you probably shouldn’t be born here. here, death is a water that drinks us, a people in
akimbo, an altercation in polling booths and overheated campaigns.

here, Akin’s father is a papyrus of broken promises, & a green-white-
green isn’t too far from an hyperbole.

here, silence is our loudest noise for revolution. & no one goes all in against the system, you will be
rigged like our elections, trust me. we tried at tollgate. we really did. Segun, shouted, endSars! & a bullet shouted back at him.

here, even
the devil’s heart pounds when he sights our leaders.
here, our skins tore because we gave cactuses warm hugs.