At 6 a.m, the moon buried the illumination of the star
I was dreaming of paradise
When the call hit my foot
A neighbor shouting in tears
Madness clothed her
After continuous vomiting and diarrhea
Between the hours of five and six
Asanat arrested the escaping silence
Ignored the calls of her mother
Denied her the claim of motherhood
When I came out to arrest the noise
I saw the father, Asanat on his shoulder
Like a lifeless antelope on a hunter’s shoulder
He is running here and there seeking help
Alas, government care is far to us
No Kobo to make phone call, no Naira to get the care
Within the passing hour
Asanat goes with the escaping silence
Only the body stays behind
And father presents as an offering to the earth
Asanat is gone, she has the grave for a bed
She is neither a public ball nor a common whore
She is asleep without a man to warm her bed
No man shall ask her for a meal in the evening
And no child shall call her mother
Asanat has gone with her tomorrow
Leaving us with lifeless sorrow
No one is glad to watch her sleep
But the body cannot be offered to earth without honor
So we give her the earth, we give her the dust
(Asanat is a girl of six; she died on Sunday 18, August 2013 during a cholera epidemic in Ogun State)
Written by: Bada Yusuf Amoo
Edited by: Kukogho Iruesiri Samson
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