Where I come from
We’ve normalized the fragrance of burst sewage pipes
The children here know better than use running tap water amatope/mahumbwe
They take frog like leaps into the trenches, skins brittle and flaked
And yet when they jump out their tiny hands and feet are a shimmering delight
Glistening in the sun. Moisturized. By faeces,
It’s only over a hundred people’s waste, from the same neighbourhood
So not a big deal
Where I come from the winter mornings are dreary cold,
On those days, to rise is to heave and hove
We dress up in outfits that anticipate an afternoon of sweaty brows
Because our skies know no vows,
Where I come from
There truly is no honour among thieves, so here dreams are stolen with ease,
The smoothest talkers are made here, their jaws cracked so they can talk you to bed
But treat pregnancies like STIs. If the test comes out positive, it’s a negative
They run, they’ve learnt this from their fathers too you see
Where I come from
We get and give second chances,
We understand that we only ever live to shed our skin just as trees do,
We believe people bloom and shoot,
That reconciliation is just a chore,
The minute we start sharing our mangoes and peaches we know it’s spring,
A time of reconciliation and starting afresh
By Michelle Thanya