we, zoom into
everything zoom-able as they are a brief consolation of a fulfilling
life, make do with the crumbs leftover from our nightmares,
BARRICADES OF BRICKS (a poem by Ókólí Stephen Nonso)
yesterday, a man died & was laid with unspoken prayers.
they say families come together to show love & say goodbye to loved ones,
WHAT THE NOSE MASK MEANS IN MY COUNTRY (a poem by Akin-Ademola Emmanuel)
That every song of poor mothers
Has two verses—an imprecation for democracy’s
Bearded reptiles & an elegy
WHICH DAY IS SATURDAY? (a poem by Favour Chukwuemeka)
Yet you won’t be one to die before your time,
after all Abraham’s your father
and Chapter’s cook is your mother.
COVID-19 (a poem by Anthony Ogidi)
between reality and fantasy
we see zilch swimming the sea
the depth of faith flows
towards confluence of cognition
TOMORROW BEGINS TODAY (a poem by Olivia Onyekwena)
This is our new normal but I cannot say that I will get used to the mask.
I wonder if the sun ever feels like not shinning on some days
PORTRAIT OF A NIGERIAN SUNSET (a poem by Chibueze Obunadike)
our country has since stalled into a go slow.
around me, sealed shops & empty buildings stretch
lifeless for miles, monuments of a once-alive city
A GIFT TO ART (a poem by Reginald C. Ofodile)
The artists in despair I urge to view
the current deadlock as a heaven-sent boon,
as hustle, parties, trysts, we must eschew,
for focused work, the times are opportune.
DAY SIX OF ISOLATION (a poem by Chibueze Obunadike)
i am tired of waiting around for something to happen,
say, news of a cure, news of a friend’s death,
news of my mother accidentally getting sneezed
A SMALL WORLD (a poem by Tajudeen Alaya)
One hiss in China—a thousand mountains in Italy crumbles
Like a biscuit in the mouth of Death.
The World is on its knees