Self-portrait as Moses in Egypt
By Zach Tanimola
I drink their wine, eat what I am given. I cannot tell my wife how much it hurts to hear the bishop for the sixth time this month declare devastation upon my kin. Because I kiss my wife, it is assumed I too, am a noble citizen of Straightness. The news is the same. Daily. Two men caught in Port Harcourt, almost lynched. Lady flogged to near-death by family for lesbianism. I drink their wine, I love my wife, will not stop, I cannot live without her voice decorating my life, but in stories about exes, I still switch pronouns.
I drink their wine, eat what I am given. I cannot tell my wife how much it hurts to hear the bishop for the sixth time this month declare devastation upon my kin. Because I kiss my wife, it is assumed I too, am a noble citizen of Straightness. The news is the same. Daily. Two men caught in Port Harcourt, almost lynched. Lady flogged to near-death by family for lesbianism. I drink their wine, I love my wife, will not stop, I cannot live without her voice decorating my life, but in stories about exes, I still switch pronouns.
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BIO:
Zach Tanimola is a non-binary poet and teacher from Nigeria. When not reading, they are birdwatching. |
