By Olusoji Obebe
for my grandfather & Tunde Obebe
how memories of my grandfather are graven
into a boy we call ‘baatunde:
baba kú, baba kùn;
we gather time into a large piece of wood
& we try not to wake wicked ghosts
by calling just grandfather’s name
because wicked ghosts can only haunt;
they can’t hunt for bodies.
we chisel the wood.
time is given the shape of a bird.
it flies with song on its tongue—
the abstracts of memories.
it flies with a leaf in its beak—
the substance of memories.
the boy is a message that
grandfather never dies & also
the boy is a message that
we never let grandfather die.
Olusoji Obebe , Nigerian writer and artist, is a BoTN nominee. His essays have made the longlists of the African Human Rights Essay Competition 2021 and Libretto African Anthology Prize 2022. His works are featured/forthcoming in Brittle Paper, Salamander Ink Mag, Lumiere Review, Fiery Scribe Review, and elsewhere. Twitter @olusoji_obebe.
Hot Pot Magazine 