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LAGOS BORN
LAGOS BORN
You have been to London?
And Toronto?
And Washington DC?
And, New York, Paris and San Francisco?
And you have traveled to all the capitals of African countries?
The Farmer of Colors
The Farmer of Colors
Harvesting a field
of chromatic linguistics
is akin to a dance:
first you must hold
your canvas like a partner
and place layers of
harmonious tinctures over
the picture plane.
Proposed Ban on Street Begging in Southwest Nigeria?
Proposed Ban on Street Begging in Southwest Nigeria?
I love beggars
Beggars are your best friends
Everywhere you turn on the streets of southwest Nigeria,
beggars have occupied the pathways:
beggars on the floor, crawling toward you;
beggars limping;
beggars pretending to limp;
The Butterfly Thinks Himself A Bird
Moyo Okediji
Title: The Butterfly Thinks Himself A Bird
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Date 2021
Size: 24″ x 30″
The title is an important line in playwright Ola Rotimi’s masterpiece, THE GODS ARE NOT TO BLAME.
Rotimi took the line from a Yoruba proverb, “Labalábá fira rẹ̀ wẹ́ye, kò le ṣìṣe ẹyẹ.” ̛It means, “The butterfly compares itself to the bird, but is unable to perform like a bird.”
Cellphone Conversation
Cellphone Conversation
(After Wole Soyinka’s “Telephone Conversation”)
My phone rang, I recognized the number
and picked it up.
“Hey, babe,” I said,
“What’s going on?”
She started laughing,
and it seemed she wanted to talk,
but just couldn’t control herself.
I wanted to know
what was so funny. Finally,
she managed to stop laughing.