Jerry Chiemeke
I'm Used to This Place
I should not be blamed
for thinking the war is over
because long stretches of ceasefires
have a way of causing deception,
making me believe that
the blues have run out of fabric
to drape me like on nights prior
and that rainbows have
suddenly agreed to grace
each break of my dawns.
Like a camera running out of film
the colour slowly leaves the room
and I lose the ability to
tell magenta from turquoise
because I’m submerged in greyscale
and the shadows that
I know so well
saunter in like long-lost brothers.
I seek salvation in my drawers
but then I remember
that day on many moons past
when I flushed down my weapons,
the pretty little round things
whose presence I could really use now
as the armies march loudly
the way I was once used to,
and the voices of black dogs
are sure to drown out
any light and warmth I cling to lately.
for thinking the war is over
because long stretches of ceasefires
have a way of causing deception,
making me believe that
the blues have run out of fabric
to drape me like on nights prior
and that rainbows have
suddenly agreed to grace
each break of my dawns.
Like a camera running out of film
the colour slowly leaves the room
and I lose the ability to
tell magenta from turquoise
because I’m submerged in greyscale
and the shadows that
I know so well
saunter in like long-lost brothers.
I seek salvation in my drawers
but then I remember
that day on many moons past
when I flushed down my weapons,
the pretty little round things
whose presence I could really use now
as the armies march loudly
the way I was once used to,
and the voices of black dogs
are sure to drown out
any light and warmth I cling to lately.
Biography
Jerry Chiemeke is an editor, culture critic and lawyer. His works have appeared or are forthcoming in Agbowo, Inlandia Journal, The Question Marker, Bone and Ink Press, among others. A lover of long walks and alternative rock bands, Jerry lives a secluded life in Lagos, Nigeria. He is in the process of publishing his poetry chapbook, "The Vanilla Verses".
Facebook: www.facebook.com/I.J.Chiemeke Twitter: @J_Chiemeke Instagram: @J_Chiemeke Website: www.jerrychiemeke.com |