By Aderolu Nuriyah
HOPE
Is two boys running on the street-
Praying. To have that 20 naira
If only-
Someone would accept to have their car cleaned.
It’s that look in that child’s eyes,
When she asks
“Aunty, do you want a drink”
So maybe,
One day she’d have money to buy-
That strawberry sweet your daughter’s licking-
Too.
That look you think you can’t decipher,
But you know it’s there,
The look that animal gives you
As you place the knife on its neck-
Asking, for a day more,
Another chance to live.
It’s the voice you get from a worried mother
Asking, if only-
You could save her little daughter
Been wheeled into the hospital,
An oxygen mask covering her beautiful face.
It’s in that little girl-
Waiting, salivating,
As mama carefully puts the yam to fry
Maybe she’ll get noticed,
And be called to have one-
This time.
It’s in making prayers to the Almighty,
Listing them one by one,
That maybe today, someday
One of our many problems would get solved.
neesah…
Copyright© 2020 Aderolu Nuriyah
Undivided Magazine 