Bambialá (Mendicants)
We are the silencers of their misfortune
and the takers of their lack.
We pocket their burdens
and give them our prayers.
With our hands wide open,
our mouth chants our song
that calls them to us.
We are ‘Bambialás’;
We sift their set-backs into gone-backs –
We turn their grief into blessings –
We foresee the present
and line their path.
We are sons and daughters of the street –
the morning’s mist, the noon trekkers,
and the night’s breeze that wander for shelter.
We live to hustle
for tomorrow’s smile.
Emmanuel Ojeikhodion is a Lagos-based Writer who majors in poetry. He was born and bred in Somolu, Lagos state. He hails form Owan west in Edo state. He writes poetry with a tortured soul. He also writes fiction and essays. He studies English and Literature at the University of Benin, Benin City.