Unusual days
At first it sounded indistinct
because it came when the world was asleep
And streets devoid of men
But they woke up and saw footprints
Large, as if ingrained
So, men said God had visited earth
Whatever God is to them, maybe some gods
Who made fear roam their streets
They stayed in their camps
And spoke every day about the fear
That had enveloped their lives
The fear that walked their streets,
That drank the blood of men and ate their flesh
That dropped their skulls by the road
For vultures to clean up
They covered their nostrils with clothes,
A measure made to keep death away
And in muffled voices spoke about how uncertain life is,
How unusual each day had become
How staying indoor had made them pale
They counted figures: dead and sick men
And men who were made whole by forces they are yet to understand,
Maybe they never will
They danced with them—men who were made whole
And asked if they had been really sick,
Because they still question how true this is,
If their being sick was not an illusion
They sat by their radios and listened to the news,
They complained about their government,
And listed reasons their leaders should be dead.
They lamented about their hunger, how angry it had made them.
And maybe one morning
Who knows
They will wake up
To begin their normal lives again
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Damilola Omotoyinbo believes in the power of the pen and the positive difference it can make in our world. She has published works in Kalahari, Pelleura, Praxis, Parousia e-magazine, The Nigerian Tribune Newspaper, and elsewhere. Damilola is a 2019 Fellow of the Ebedi International Writers Residency, a YALI Alumna and a fan of Àsá. She studied Biochemistry and blogs at damilolaomotoyinbo.wordpress.com. She may be reached on Facebook @Damilola Omotoyinbo.