By Jakeob Anderson

 

I have been hiding all my life, 

This world, smaller than my mother’s womb,

Inelastic. 

I have nowhere to go but here.

 

My father’s only son is a weakling;

Expectation robs him of strength.

They call him ‘Kojo Besia’,

Flamboyant, abomination.

 

My mother knows what I am.

She’d rather die than acknowledge it.

Thus, my every waking moment 

Is filled with silent derision.

 

I breathe in reverse so I won’t die.

Shadow is light, fear is safety,

And despair is my only right. Still,

I tell myself tomorrow will be better.

 

How do you cope when you can never be ordinary?

 

Jakeob is a queer Ghanaian writer & poet. Growing up, he was fascinated by words, and this interest led to his early exposure to reading, and later, writing.  Having almost always written for self and leisure, I Sing in Colour Like Spring, is his first public contribution to queer art.  Find him on Twitter @jakeobs_cross.

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