Will Mama Ever Understand?

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Will Mama Ever Understand?

The chirping of morning birds
had brought the dawn to my bed
First, it was crows of morning roosters
Followed by early rays

I'd travelled a long and dirty road
Home bound I came
Darkness clouded the path
But my feet were wiser than the lies of time

My heart leaped with joy at the magical presence of my old mother. h

Though I've seen many storms in life

But her thatched roof provides comfort she needs

Alone I sat with her under the moonlight
Her presence graced the mystery of this fleeting hours
The strength she lost by aging,t

Are compensated for in wisdom.

And the life within her dying lips
Sat on the mat of the evening

Again mama told me the stories
Those stories that accompanied my childhood
But this time a  warning

"My child, you are an eagle
The king of the sky
Fondle with the stars
But stay away from the falconer"

"My son, you are a lion
Rule the jungle
With death in your claws
But stay away the beasts of the sea'

"Beware of strange women
One bee brings honey
Another brings the stings of death. 
Addiction is the mockery of the kings
Pride is the doom of the Mighty"

Boast not in the valley
And humility will be your wings"

I have drank from the ancient pots
I have eaten from the sacred calabash of her wisdom
But the aging brow of mama's eyes
Cannot see the changes in time
Love and lie now go hand in hand
Will mama ever understand
If I tell her of Aranti?
The only girl I ever love but can't trust?

© Olatuja Oloyede