buy a plane ticket and return home, finally
\nfor a visit.
\nshave off the curls and knots in your hair. start
\nfrom the side of your scalp that itches the most. go
\non a pilgrimage. board a machine. let it be an eagle.
\nlet the bile in your gallbladder slither up your throat. construct
\na plan. make an inventory of every burial site you know and a shrine.
\n.
\non arrival, drown your feet in a fountain. let it be
\nmade of electrolytes and reflectors. visit
\na witch-doctor in the ebony of night, clutching
\na yellow fowl under your armpit. and hurl your guts.
\nstand on a piece of land that belonged to your grandmother. and speak.
\n.
\nwear black. or
\nash-gray. or white.
\n.
\npour palm wine. and offer
\na cola-nut.
\n.
\nstand by the mausoleum of someone who died before your nativity. and
\nby another who died after your departure.
\npour palm wine. tell them
\nyou couldn\u2019t keep your end of the promise. tell them.
\nyou are case files, court records and ciphers. and
\nGermany is not a place where you are a person. tell
\nthem, you possess a skin before you own a face. tell
\nthem, you too are a carcass. and
\nthat by the time you die, you would
\nhave been dead at least a thousand times. tell
\nthem – there is an onyx room you visit every three months. for years.
\ntell them, it is a place where the version of you they remember is buried in paper piles.
\nand regulations.
\n.
\nthrust roses onto their graves. one
\nfor each person you lost. beg
\nfor forgiveness. ask.
\nfor forgiveness.
\n.
\nstand in the forlornness that dwells in your marrow. lean into it. listen.
\nfind the union between drowning and healing. give it a place.
\ngive it a name. give it a name you recognize.
\n.
\nsummon your ancestors.
\nsummon your ancestors. summon
\nyour ancestors.
\n.
\nsay their names.
\n.
\nlet your heart split in halves. take
\na tour of your grandmothers lands. and
\npour palm wine. wait
\nfor memories of your father’s face to arrive. make
\nCocoyam a subject in your household – it
\nwill keep you home longer this time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
buy a plane ticket and return home, finally for a visit. shave off the curls and knots in your hair. start from the side of your scalp that itches the most. go on a pilgrimage. board a machine. let it be an eagle. let the bile in your gallbladder slither up your throat. construct a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":18809,"template":"","categories":[51,11],"class_list":["post-19009","stsp_text","type-stsp_text","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-issue-23","category-lyrik"],"yoast_head":"\n