May 3, 2024
Poetry
What Keeps Her, What Do We Pick Up, Ballet of War
Artwork by Uzomah Ugwu
What Keeps Her Blind exchange Can’t look both ways Caved in discussions All up in the air He said she was Loose Tight percussion Kept her moving By the jukebox Pondering eyes Looked at her Found her address Like they knew her And that blue dress She danced Like she could have any man She would choose He wanted her He left with ache What Do We Pick Up What do we pick up expect shell Cases of slip bullets Walks by buildings cut in half by missiles In continuous disaster Where no sound of children’s laughter Is heard scattered amongst the streets Pet animals now walking without a lease Or able to find something to eat What do we pick up After war is gone If it ever finally leaves Ballet of War Empty shells of bullets made for terror Enclosed together in walls that seem not big Enough to stop the fall at the sight of a directed bomb Felt loose, had constant ache, not for food But I started to shake Buried in my toes Forgotten snow cover up dreams Tip toe, tip toe on these floors A kiss from mother Sister has not fallen asleep But where can we have peace Under this bunker of war? Sudden movement missing Where it all began till I was able To dance again even in pain A smile from a stranger’s face now a friend A twist or turn Never out of place I felt alive until it was realized the war was still Outside waiting to come in Where I was just everyone’s dancer And a way to forget what lay ahead of us outside those doors so I continued to dance this ballet of war
