Picture Five

tomorrow has become a constant
for our hopes to hop on,
to rest on, to rely on
like a house needs pillars
we have taken today into our hands
mistreating, maltreating, marginalizing
favour has become a misery
blessing does not come in disguise anymore
they do not come at all
a house with a leaking roof
has no business welcoming guests
these families do not need a family house
let every man tend his gardens,
lick his wound and pay
attention to the details of his own family
this family is too much for this house.

Victor Oyedele