today or tomorrow?
it matters not
i live with the terror of identical days
i cannot cross the highways without vests
no jury, no judge
we are all criminals,
guilty of being young
convicts for dreaming
murderers for praying for justice
we could not cover Ifeoma abugu's innocence
we did not send our hashtags in time to remove the sinking bullets from chibuike daniel
no one asks about the widow of Hamilton obazee anymore
even the hashtag activists cannot protect us from this living hell
our broken ribs tell a more interesting stories than the heart it guards
living scars and dead cells
the pandemic wraps us in its onslaught
we are now numbers behind the headlines,
bombs and cows in the north
badges and gun in the south
cornered preys in a guerrilla continent
justify bullets in defeated souls
read the plea of the executioner
watch the news and pile up your trends of tragedy
death and numbers
is it the mourning we turn to solemn hymns?
children peak and die young
fleeting revolution and immortal terror
modern day slavery
splitting reality
the jail yard has more attendance than the class room because of the dead names being crossed out
i live in anxiety
i cower in my fragility
i sleep with a racing heart
depression slaughters me fiercely
my racing heart stings than the mosquito bites
cuffs on my tongue, even my speech isn't free
who knows if my fingers will bleed from the confidence it steals?
once upon a time, i prayed to god
now i realize that the only real thing is the gun pointed at me
the bullet is more omnipresent than my creator in my own country
today or tomorrow
i mourn at the terror of identical days
Festus Obehi Destiny
Identical days