Headache inducing hoots of Micras™
Roofs as brown as the mud of the thousands small rivers:
The crowd. The noise. The odor of makeshift dumps.
Colorful albeit loathsome Yorùbá adjectives.
Olórí burúkú, ọkọ olosi.
Ìbàdàn. Forever my home.
Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
Lost in the pages of history,
Deep in the past,
In a land where words have lost meaning.
Conquerors rewrite history,
But what happens when there is no victory.
Who tells the tale of the dead accurately?
Certainly not the man with a brush and bucket.
All wars start with a man wronged,
Or with a notion of being wrong.
But this war, this raging pandemic
Is a fight for survival.
It’s humanity against the virus;
But the greatest foe is still human.
The rulers want to rule,
No matter the cost or price.
But if this war is not won,
There will be no one to rule over.
And certainly no ruler!
Stay safe,
Wash your hands,
Help your neighbours!
Wear a mask or not,
Let’s keep humanity alive!
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
I took a step back
And focused on the people around me;
I detached myself from relatives
And watched from afar.
No one missed me.
No one looked for me,
Then I realized something important.
I don’t need this muscle to pump blood.
I dont need this life inside of me.
No one loves me,
So I’ll be here no more.
I want out!
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
So I continued this piece on viewers request. I hope you enjoy❤
Blood boiling, temperature rising, brain cells juggling;
A war between my head and my heart, between what I want to do and what I must do;
Shall I, shall in not.
The door creaked open to reveal a little angel, MY little angel.
This was a perfect time to start my soul snatching, but, she said “hello” with her angelic smile and charming beauty; the inner mother in me melted.
At that moment, I wanted to hug her, to kiss her, to tell her muumy is here, to tell her how much I loved her. Then I remembered, I had lost that right the moment I decided to become the beastly image before her.
She walked towards me and said “Are you lost?, my daddy can help you”, with no atom of fear in her voice. I got back to my senses and said “No dear I’m not lost, I just came to get something”. She enquired further about my mission. I couldn’t blame a four year old for asking so much questions. I was only scared that she could wake her daddy up.
To avoid that, I made my next move, I took her to the living room, read her a story till she fell asleep.
No, I didn’t take her soul, I decided to be a mother rather than being a blood thirsty beast. So I took my own soul.
Now I have become a figment, an ordinary shadow, neither here nor there;
I think I like this, because now I can watch over my family and make sure the beasts of my kind never cross their paths.
The End
A journal-type series of short stories through the eyes of separate individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Please read, enjoy and leave comments.
December 23rd, 2019.
The third wedding I would be attending this month. The couples were always awesome together, full of smiles and positive energy. Here comes the bride, beautiful lady and a little bit shy. She is cool, but not as much as I would be in six months time when I’m married to the love of my life.
January 23rd, 2020.
The news reaching us in the country is that a man in Wuhan, China ate a bat. I’m also surprised too. I mean, who eats bats. And now there’s a virus going around infecting many people and killing some. Sneezing to death must not be a good way to go. But that doesn’t concern me and the plans I have with the love of my life.
April 23rd, 2020.
Schools closed. Markets and places of worship too. And the not so strong economy close to being crippled. All social gathering stopped. I didn’t plan my wedding to be a very big ceremony but this Chinese Virus has screwed up so many things. I’m getting a little bit annoyed with the entire situation of things. I can get married in my family house, but the partial lockdown has affected more than the economy.
August 1st, 2020.
Even though the lockdown is almost lifted, the pandemic has caused a huge delay in my plans. I had believed that I would have been married by this time of the year. I would have graduated by this time of the year. He would have sorted everything out. I just want all of these to go, so I can be with the love of my life.
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
Since I’ve been matured enough to know right from wrong, the only emotions that speak to me are love and pain. No matter who I am with, no matter what situation I find myself, I am always in pain.
Physically, emotionally and psychologically, I am never free of pain. For a time, I used to think that it made me human. But the people devoid of pain are not less human.
I loved a girl with the whole of my life and it ended in tears. Hot tears. Premium pain. And because of her, I promised not to allow any human to hurt me. Not again. But that does not diminish the pain I’m carrying around in my heart.
I had an accident when I was a teenager and it changed my life forever. At least, it made sure my knees will never remain the same again. The pain is ever-present in my joints, bones, and muscles.
No matter who or what comes along, pain is expected to descend on me at one point or another. But I’ll never feel it. No one can hurt me again. Because what is dead may never die again.
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
I took a step back
And focused on the people around me;
I detached myself from relatives
And watched from afar.
No one missed me.
No one looked for me,
Then I realized something important.
I don’t need this muscle to pump blood.
I don’t need this life inside of me.
No one loves me,
So I’ll be here no more.
I want out!
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
I’ve been sitting here thinking of words to describe a person as remarkable as he is;
I might not have found the best words but I have the truest words;
He is one in a million a special kind of ‘character’, if he was an actor I would watch every movie he features in;
He makes the angry ones smile, the sad ones happy, the stressed ones relaxed, let’s just say he is a magician with no wand;
He is an impeccable writer who brings every syllable and every word he pens down to life, that I do admire;
His persistency and perseverance awes me till this very day;
Akinkunmi Ajagbe, a true son of the soil indeed;
The friendship we share is one I’ll cherish for as long as I live.
I was scrolling through my status when I got a shock,
No, not the electrical kind.
This is different!
I’ve watched beauty pageant,
And I’ve seen beautiful ladies.
But you, yes you!
You redefined beauty.
You made me question perfection, because you are it.
You are perfection.
Gorgeous smile.
Homely face,
And the cleanest of skins.
But then I don’t doubt it.
All Allah’s creations are perfect,
But He blessed you specially.
Long story cut short;
Beauty is You.
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
A name that has always been attached to perfection;
A name that has always made me smile;
A name that in itself is beautiful;
Maryam; cool, cool and collected.
Harbinger of smiles, laughter and joy.
If not you, then who?
Our first son could be Isa:
What would that make me?
Certainly the happiest man on earth,
You being by my side breeds confidence.
I want you,
Just you and no other.
Maryam, would you be mine forever?
©Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
Sophocles Writes