Chicken Fight & Enough

by Mulumba Ivan Matthias

Chicken Fight

She hits the table with her hands

throws a saucepan at him

before releasing a mouthful of insults!

For her pathetic life, she blames him

as he imitates a bee, walking in circles.

He laughs.

The storm brewing inside her is let lose.

A cup, a plate, a spoon, a mug…

she empties the whole cupboard on him.

She runs out of the house

screaming on top of her voice -

a useless man, so useless

no food, no clothes, no water…

yet he’s drunk!

The whole world gets to know

what a fool he is,

what a fool she is.

She cries.

He laughs

at her clothes,

breasts laden with age,

face smooth no more…

not like the bar maid.

Enough

I’m tired of begging

like a housefly hanging

around moneyed friends

to exploit their generosity.

I’m tired of having

a baggage of qualifications

yet still exploited

by employers.

I’m tired,

I’m fed up,

of working without pay,

of starving,

of footing back home.

I’m sick of it -

this pennilessness,

the inability to steer life

at my pace.

I’m tired,

I’m fed up

of being broke.

Mulumba Ivan Matthias is a Ugandan author, living in Kampala. He is a valuation surveyor by profession. HIs first collection of poems, Poetry In Motion, was published in 2012. His poetry and short fiction have been published in The Kalahari Review, Readers’ Café Africa, and Africa Book Club. You can see more of his work on his blog.