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Thursday, August 8, 2019

Agarau Adedayo redux

HOMEWARD 

I shall come home 
From this forest of bony branches 
Where centipedes crawl into waterholes 
To end their looming gloom. 

I shall come home 
From this room tainted in black 
Where gecko swallows my prayer of freedom 
And spiders web my daunting dreams.
 
I shall come home
To your waiting arms, Aduke
To wash the night off bloodshed
That rages down from wailing cloud-stead.
 
I shall come home, tonight
With fainting breath-failing strength
To die at your heart; a vacant slate of destiny 
Till I wake in the warmth of your palms.
 
Baba Yaga -- Ivan Bilibin

1 comment:

  1. Aduke is a girl's name that means "much beloved" in Yoruba.
    Baba Yaga is a figure in Russian fairytales who lives in a forest and may help or hinder people she encounters.

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