Life is a bed of roses and butterflies.
Beautiful roses and colorful butterflies,
But it’s all a facade.
I held a beautiful rose,
But its thorn is boring into my flesh.
A beautiful butterfly on my farm,
But it left a thousand caterpillars behind.
I thought I had it all;
But the consequences are killing me.
Like a beautiful suit of armor in water,
I’m drowning in a beautiful regalia.
I’m dying,
We’re dying,
But that’s just 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
Pain is a word I understand,
Oxygen brings life,
But this pain, makes me feel alive.
Whenever I stand,
I can feel the force of my life,
Drain away, making it difficult to thrive.
Like the three-headed monsters of Hiroshima;
Or the enslaved humans in Myanmar;
The Uyghurs in China;
I have no power over my fate.
This pain and I,
Perfect unholy matrimony!
There’s a kind of loneliness,
Where people around you feel comfortable,
Whole and complete when with you,
But the only thing you feel is emptiness;
Gaping hole.
Wide chasm.
Unrepentant cliff edge.
60,000 ft under water.
© Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
Pierce me with a knife,
I might live.
But a queen spurning my advances,
Find me a cozy 6 ft. underground apartment!
There’s a kind of loneliness,
Where you keep seeing a face,
A face that’s driving you insane,
A face that makes you suddenly violent, and nauseated, and sad, and devastated.
A face that used to bring you comfort,
A face you can’t forget, no matter how hard you try.
A face that was the symbol of hope, and all that is good.
A face you wished you never knew
You promised to stay with me till eternity.
But I made a mistake,
What’s the duration of “your” forever?
69 days is an eternity to a mosquito.
And that was all you gave!
© Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
There’s a kind of loneliness that follows a man:
The kind that makes him see chemistry,
In a woman with little or no physical attraction.
That makes him feel like a mollusc
Lying alone, empty, on the ocean floor.
There’s a kind of loneliness that follows a man:
The kind that makes him find solace,
In the arms of an armadillo.
That makes him hit the soccer ball grudgingly,
Under the empty eyes of San Siro.
There’s a kind of loneliness that follows a man:
The kind that makes him find peace in herbs and spirits,
Greens , inorganic concoctions and organic solutions,
The Holy Trinity!
There’s a kind of loneliness that follows a man:
The type that makes him want to be alone,
Forever alone.
Six feet underground,
Or forever swimming with the dolphins.
For eternity!
© Ridwan Akinkunmi Ajagbe
Sophocles Writes