A New Home

As the melodious drum beats

I gracefully dance to the skipping rhythm

The wind served as a contribution

To the flow of my sacred wear

My loved ones, I hear them clap and sing

I see joy and happiness in their eyes

I see my chosen treasure smiling as the sun

I smile back with aching gladness

I see not anymore a face but a sea

Tinbu, my beloved iroko tree

Her beauty, they say is a twin of mine

But by the moment it’s fading

The sunset quicken for my ceremony

He beside me, my body beside him

My soul beside the sea

Receiving our blessing of the moon and sun

Today I cannot flee this moment

Run out of my painful shadow

I must swallow the seeds of the black mountain

And go to my chosen home