|
EMMAN USMAN SHEHU
PUZZLES
Muffled noises upstairs
begin cycle of distraction,
distilling downstairs
burden of interpretation,
and miasma of indecision;
caught between being a good Samaritan,
or sniggered at as a voyeur.
Outside, the rain adds a conundrum
pelting torrents trapping all indoors.
Hours from now the weekend will give way
to another Monday
and all will defy the rain-
even muffled noises upstairs-
to tackle a different puzzle;
the jigsaw that will pay
the bills of survival.
A NEW FACE
When we see the face of defeat
staring straight into our eyes,
we need no further description
to recognise what stands before us.
And though we loathe to retreat,
pushing the thought back somewhere,
yet the reality in that stare
forces a rapid count of our losses.
Somehow in our retreat
we become the new face of defeat.
"Puzzles" and "A New Face" are taken from Open Sesame the second book of poetry by Emman Usman Shehu with an introduction by Harry Garuba, forthcoming September 2003.
Next Page Cover Page
|
|
