“dates”
by Uzomah Ugwu
1.
Dark shots
Passed out moons
Arise for the night
2.
Moonshine Sundays
Bulls on charge
Meet with red, bullseye
3.
Met with gloom
Decided against the wall
Dreams arranging dates with nightmares
4.
Ice cream cones licked
By adults that
Can’t relive their childhood
“saying goodbye”
Was this a different love song
The kind you only heard in your head
Unmade beds, removed pillows spread across the room
Far to the left I find you in spirits I thought
you were tired of being accustomed to
You locked on tight like a crab on the shore
to an idea that did not include a saga
Where I was a character foreshadowing
great things that in the end you wanted
But was something you couldn’t go after
A new chapter for you to outline a new mattress
For us to spring off of
Which did not matter
what part we couldn’t get pass in our past
couldn’t be hidden
Our love did not spring after winter in
season long after to hear the birds sing outside
Our disturbed windows with the type of crust
similar to ones found in the pockets of your eyes
That I looked into a hundred times wanting
to believe you, believe this believe us
We were just blind and needed to see pass
what it was really worth and giving something more than
Another try because this was a different love song
the one where you forget to cry because you can’t
Accept saying hello or most importantly
knowing when to say goodbye
“trail of blood”
Outside her belly is the distant north
That outweigh risks. She clutches her tummy
Like a check-up to see if it’s there watching above
Life caught in the air
She breathes two breathes
Two come out. One inhale
They make it
Hard to stand
Can’t keep the pace
No one is alerted
They walk on too painful to make a plea to stop
A trail of blood lies behind her
Paired with the outline of her shoes
She can’t find a heartbeat
For her or her baby
She grabs her belly once more
She walks to freedom alone
With a problem with her god
Soiled in the loss of life
Now hollow, she sees the border
As not a place to live life but to lose one
BIO
Uzomah Ugwu is a poet/writer, curator, editor, and multi-disciplined artist. Her poetry, writing, and art have been featured internationally in various publications, galleries, art spaces, and museums. She is a political, social, and cultural activist. Her core focus is on human rights, mental health, animal rights, and the rights of LGBTQIA persons. She is also the managing editor and founder of Arte Realizzata.
