On Guard

Three poems on reclaiming the values of strength and truth — from Favour Olajide

To Hold the Sun

Teach me to hold the sun down
and shield its shining as the rays struggle
to break through my fingers —
To chop the ancient giant ball several pieces
each small enough to be hidden
between hair strands
without making the head glow
and explode from heat —
To keep the light dim when the world hails
and to implode when the hails fall
and ice melts fire.

When this happens
and the imps have had their thrill,
I’ll hope they’d be able
to survive the murk and the flux of chill waters,
leftovers of the world they recreated,
not just by tilting the balance too far,
but by exterminating it.

Wait!
I’ve just risen from my torpor.
I’d rather let this fire burn to the fullest
than…
What did I say when I was away?

Volcanoes, Ghosts, and Cowards

Who said I can’t climb the mountains of history
and fill them with lava and vapour
so they explode,
generously distribute molten rock and ash
and thrust the valley’s depth
further through the earth?

Who said I can’t make hunters out of
the ghosts and the portraits of
the darlings of yesteryears?
Hunters who would go the night trips
into the forest’s belly with stony hearts
and tightened throats,
their insides, volcanoes
eager to erupt.

But if we reach that point,
what would that make of us?
Cowards who needed their mothers to
drag them out of bed at midday
And who have fathers waiting for them
with canes in hand for when they arrive
from aimless expeditions
while there was a harvest to
bring home from the farm.

Macho Man, March

What he said:
Dear Macho man,
though your bones are of
the fiercest metal
and your muscles of
the strongest leather,
remember that this little knife
made of white-hot fire
would pierce you
quickly and without fail
If you don’t keep still.

What I heard:
March, O man.
Your bones are of titanium
And even your weakest muscle
Of the thickest goatskin.
Remember that
you are born of fire
and that you chewed blades
when your peers drank milk.
Don’t keep still.
Macho man, march.

Favour Olajide is a content writer from Nigeria who also loves to write poems and stories. He writes on Medium Favour Olajide His Twitter handle is @Favour__Olajide.