I closed my eyes for a few seconds
Then opened them only to notice a different ambiance.
I didn’t see angels, I didn’t lights, I didn’t see the streets of gold anymore
I saw faces, not so familiar faces
A man that had a smile that was about to tear his mouth apart
A woman’s face who had a mix of joy and exhaustion on her face
I was confused, why did I close my eyes?
Where was I now?
I had mixed feelings I burst into tears, loud uncontrollable tears
To my surprise
My tears brought even more joy to their faces.
I was even more confused
I was so delicate and tender; I guess that was what made me so malleable
I was taking shape of everything that hit me.
My circle was so small, just me, my dad and my mum
So I was taking shape of the things they hit me with.
Things they taught me, the words they used on me
As time went on, I realized my circle became larger
I started to roll with a larger circle
My dad, my mum, my Sunday school teacher, my school teachers, Fatima, Jacob, Folorunsho, Rashida and the rest of them
I began to take shape of my larger circle
I became bloated, disfigured, shapeless.
I was Floating in the air
What a disfigure I had become
Taking shape of everything I was hit with.
I had become a dumping site, a mess
A messed up teen
I ran to Chudi hoping he would clean me up, puncture my ‘bloatedness’
But He smudged me with even more mess
We inhaled and exhaled of that substance
Took me to a climax, our hands and legs locked to each other
Our bodies covered with so much dirt
No amount of washing could take it out
I learned later that only a red liquid could take it all out- that red potent liquid.
Then an Aunt saw me in my mess, looked me in my eyes and called me Gold!
O’God! It hit me! I was Gold, I came from the streets of Gold
How had I forgotten?
I am Gold.
So I began to dig deep into the word
Engraved the word in my heart
So I began to mirror my life with the word
And shine like the gold that I am.