the rumors were indescribable, too large to fit the mouth.
we drove out of town to be husbands, naming an ostrich
of filthy talons from the balcony of our shared hotel room.
we honeymooned the playground at dusk,
to mend the potholes and dig out lustrous
treasures. what sang in the chest of his voice?
the air clotted in a solid sandstorm;
bandannas wrapped the nose, sealed in what
is common but misplaced. it must have been
hard to level the playing field, Promise: lunging
in the gluey mud, for pufferfish, hands around the prize,
but drops when it jerks and puffs.
Onyedikachi Chinedu is a Nigerian poet.