Petan
(From a poet to a son)
A first child is a road child
He paths the field of joy
Phantasmagoria of moments
First panic, first pain, first cry
That tears the joy in your father's eyes
There is more to life
Than Sponge Bob and Ben
Be wiser than the tortoise
They may go extinct
Except in books and stories
Be careful with the holy communion
Of the boys
That dark sparkling liquid
That bitter-sweet music of the times
Petan
Quiet lord of the manor
Image of his father
Be bold with women
They are human beings
But don't be in a hurry
To be at their Benin
Petan
Don't be multitasking like a lazy man
One matter at a time
Let your impatience die at ten years old
Oloriebi
you must watch your brother and sister
And hold their hands at the mudsplattered corner of the road
Petan
The cane may break at your
Stupid arse
Because you're the first mould
The plate of many manuscripts.
Do not be like your godfather
Let him teach you but
Leave him with his theories
Be complete with a hybrid knowing
All the super powers of Dad and Mum is love.
— Femi Morgan
Testimony time
Poetry is like testimony
Prose poem
Half narratives of clinical metaphors
Flashbacks that draws relief
A full story cut in half
Meteors to the light
Testimonies are prayers
Acceptance of feeble humanity
Grace and Music
— Femi Morgan
Declaration
Omalicha,
let me mop
those tears of
yesteryear
with the handkerchief
of care.
Let me robe
the nudity of
your agonies
with the frock of fondness
Omalicha, come to me,
come with your secrets
bare.
let me feel the heat of your worries.
— Ajise Vincent
Papa's advice
Son, your attitude is like a poem
Garnished with
X-rated subtleties
Cum dictions.
It heralds lewdness.
It awaits a connoisseurs' rejection.
It's akin to dames
Who wear miniskirted esteems.
Who take doughs from
potbellied grandees
& expect the totem of these hombres
to obey the creed of monks.
Son, your attitude is simply the note
being prepared for a dirge to be rendered
to an unrepentant prodigal.
— Ajise Vincent
Reverence
Omalicha, your smile is a god
that edifies my esteem
enchants my being.
it is the testament
that makes me a worshipper
at the feet of your beauty.
— Ajise Vincent
Femi Morgan is co-curator of Artmosphere, a leading arts and culture event in Nigeria and a co-publisher at WriteHouse Collective. He is a co-recipient of the 234Next Fashion Copy Prize (2011) and was longlisted for the BN Poetry Prize in 2015. He is the author of the chapbook Silent Drummings and co-editor of Phases: Poetry of People.
Ajise Vincent is a Nigerian Poet. His poem 'Song of a progeny' was a shortlisted poem at the Korea-Nigeria Poetry Feast 2015. His works have been published in London Grip, Kalahari Review, Sakonfa and others. He is currently