Olalekan Ajayi

Olalekan Ajayi Poems

The Best Poem Of Olalekan Ajayi

At The Intersection

At the Intersection
(For Ruqayyah F. Mohammed)

By Olalekan Ajayi

At the junction
Before a hundred uneasy eyes
And the dawning sun above as chief witness
Rubber tubes bear metal frames
Hither and thither
The Light gave me right of way
But the male traveler despised the light
And rammed into my sleigh
Near anarchy
But no blood is spilled on the road
Hot blood floods my veins
Calmed only by the rider's innocent tears
Hands clasped, the penitent lad knelt before me
For he had broken the edict
Like a goddess, I sought to forgive the contrite soul
Alas, the kinsperson of the pleading lad rode in
Like a savage beast after a demure prey
And stirred a tempest in my soul
His words the stench of a cesspit
Though the sufferer I was
Vile he offered in place of balm
He gave me his back
That bore his impertinence for womb carriers
He said I was less than a man
He would converse only with
One without mammary glands
The scoffer dared me before witnesses
To summon my ménage
And when he from whose loins I came
Sent an emissary that emerged at the intersection
Like a knight of old
The lad's brother quavered and
Lay prostrate at my feet, at my mercy
To deny forgiveness is to be like he at my feet
And despise the tears the lad had shed
I am more than who the lad's brother thinks I am
I am a woman!

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