When we scooted off from the elite entrance of St. Joseph’s Primary School,
Not using tissues to rub her eyes.
As if Mum could gradually bear
Such grades. We all had tacit consent not to quarrel
While Dad was driving us home, bypassing
A hushed carnival
As crows cawed and ruffled their feathers up on the roller coaster.
Crouching and facepalming until they finished
Counselling me and scrawling their parents’ signatures on the transcript,
The spontaneous postures.
Read MoreLaid bare,
next to glistening candelabras,
bound naked atop shining silver,
served on a platter.
Placed next to glinting cutlery,
and fine wine to wash her down with.
A table set for a king.
Read MoreSweet bubble bath, absorb me.
Smooth as buttermilk,
filling my senses with acrid lavender aroma.
Distorted features through shifting blue,
streaks of pale skin, rippling and dividing
as reflected tranquillity.
Tempting seeking hands to
break through the surface.
Read MoreI know what people say about African women,
especially aunties, and sometimes I laugh along
but I cannot help but combust into sparks of joy
when I think about the women in my family.
Read MoreMidnight strikes with pixy breath pervading
Across starlit doors once wide, slowly closed
With the sound of chiming, butter melting,
With the dawn approaching for sunset I end
On an island with cruel Calypso.
Read MoreFor they used to grip the edges of the scorching bowls of soup,
For they used to knead the dough and imitate Jamie Oliver,
Sprinkling herbs and thymes over a Tesco-like pizza.
Read MoreI snuck the two in red wax,
tilting to the ether,
so slim.
Splintered wood stands stuck,
yet still santal, still sweet.
Read MoreIt’s evergreen Alaska, glacier snow.
‘Not long to go’, the trees reply
to the bear’s stomach rumble, grumble
the rain from molecular skies.
Read MoreStep ONE: What is a ghost?
A ghost is a wish
regret
alive
a fantastic starting point for the exploration of houses.
Read MoreWhen I was first told
my voice has an “international twinge”,
I felt a deep pang of sadness,
unspoken shame.
The whiplash of an unintended insult
staining my cheeks childish.
The word “outsider” hidden in the subtext,
another reminder: “you don’t belong here”.
Read MoreIt’s 4am again,
I wish my mind would rest.
My worries replayed, amplified, on repeat,
our brains remember things, you see.
Pausing and replaying my worst days,
a highlight reel of mistakes I’ve made.
Read More
