Fatherhood

1am followed by 3am, and even again at 6am, is the cause of my blood shot eyes,
Hence why I’m looking for the button to snooze this human alarm.
All I hear is screaming sirens, did somebody get stabbed or was it firearms
That was shot; which got me out of my bed, saying “shush,” because I’m so tired
But there’s still a continuation of sniffles and I realise that all he wants is to be coated by my forearm
He don’t like to sleep alone, so to keep him warm, the duvet over him is now my underarm.
I don’t understand the baby talk mixed with the winging, whines and cries
Maybe he’s having a nightmare and what he wants from me is to protect him from harm.

This probably doesn’t flow on from the last stanza but I’ve been asked to use my wrist and let the ink flow on parenthood
But I’m questioning how I can write on something that I’ve never understood.
It’s not like my father weren’t there or isn’t here to let me know what should be done
But I’m still in a state of shock, Ben and Jerry’s frozen, like I’m about to be knocked over by a truck
And I don’t know how to prevent it or what could be done.
I’m trying my best to do what’s good.
What really helps is that I have a few brothers in the same struggle as me,
And I don’t know, what I’d do without my brotherhood.
Probably could say the same for little man, don’t know what he’d do or how he’d turnout without fatherhood.

 

 

Psycho genetics in my bloodstream

A fiend to hear her screams…

Hold on sorry I was referring to my last nightmare or was it a dream

The anomaly of this piece excretes

Like the acronym MRS NERG

Officially a preschool nerd

As I refer to way back when

Still a virgin to conspiracies, convictions and needing to be a social addition.

So 10 years down the line I had my own addition to extend my legacy.

As I look upon her, I want our relationship to have longevity, to remember the memories.

As we sit over a cup of tea.

And I held my promise and said I’d never leave.

But once I thought…

This may be the last time I see you for a while. I’m not capable,
Of being that figure in your life
I don’t know when I’ll be, in all honesty,

My mum was right, I am still a kid
Don’t get me wrong I love you and I’m not a part-time figure, but the pain I’d cause is more than one should bare.

You’d probably be thinking

“You don’t care, You should have stayed, endured… I was willing to share”
But, was I?
I’ve never been good at this father stuff.
Never known what it was
Cause my father never was,
So will this cycle ever cease
I pray Lord, that it will, please
I’d go down on my face
Forget my knees,
I’ve never been worthy to be
Your father…

Dele “Delewrites” Osunsami and Deji “DWordChef” Babatunde 01.01.2012

Men being Men

She said she wanted a poem about men being men
Looked at the challenge and
Writers block struck again
I was baffled as I delivered my first draft

I began to vacillate
An excuse, concept, answer for this challenge
Biblical I could have brought forth a Proverbs 31 Man
For this challenge
But…who is He

He takes his pen of creation and shatters the dreams of every fresh canvas
He decides to scribble on
Sometimes his ink creates life
But He regurgitates to them his same fate
A fatherless child

Knowing what he does
Fear beings to clot
His memory spot
To his lonely cot
Because he knows not
What he does

So he
Runs
And does what his indigenous nature only knows what

But if he knew what his pen is suppose to do
He would
Write, compose, draw, paint
Life, love, joy, peace, kindness, longevity
Not cause destruction, anger, pain, or periodic disjointed chains of unfulfilled legacies

He uses his hammering tools to
Replay his anger so it
Batters the atmospHERe
As she’s can only accept the punishment
With the force of his chisel and hammer

But if only he knew
He would utilise his tools
To create HIStory
Engaging his craftsmanship
In deliver his wealth and riches
So when he becomes a man

He leaves his mothers crib
To find his spare rib
On an Adam and Eve tip

As a man is imperfection searching for perfection
But if he does strive for perfection
Excellence will be his compensation
In his automatic failure for attempting
Based on Lombardi’s ethic

So don’t dwell on
A man of perfection
Looking in a godly direction
Grabbing your attention
As perfection lies in your connection
With God as your core

Me myself
I don’t know what being a man is
Even though I am
My eyes see
A reflection
Of man
But My mind
Is blind
In it’s pursuit
Of what a man is

So trial and error is the name that should be attached to most of our males
Cause we weren’t really taught how
So from Adam, Samuel, David, Solomon to Olu, Ayo, Kweku. Kojo
We make mistakes in being men
It’s how we get back up
So stand by my side when imperfections creep
As I’m a man trying to be what God destined me to be

By Deji Babatunde