The Lagos Streets

The troops move in one way and then the other
The goal of the day looming large
The immediate shoves of friendly foes fade fast
Everyone struggles for a footspace; without thought
But that’s the big city life we’ve come to love
Large lovely Lagos, a city never late.

Man, metal, beast and all
Bask in the rhetoric frenzy of life
The screams of rubbing metals twist our ears
Bringing us to present reality; interrupting our day dreams
How about the beast-the beast we dread
The bird’s-eye hydra of traffic gridlock
Surely sucking the last drop off the driver’s emotional vein.
But we all agree that we love Lagos
Maybe, think again.

Here the air sighs continually
Trying to comprehend the sweet fragrance of diversity and the bitter taste of smoke.
The smell of humanity fills our nostrils
Constantly reminding us that we are not alone
What a life, a life of shared responsibility perhaps of shared suffering
But we all love Lagos
Don’t we?

But that’s not all there is to the big city
Pacing the aisle of the marina, amidst the skyscraping seats
Reveals the beauty of business
The magnet that has drawn us all here
The business of earning a living
Trading sweat for silver and silver for gold
We all want money
Don’t you?

I love the Lagos street
Looking at it from the distance of my mind
I see urgent determination etched in the wrinkles of faces
And the smile of hope at the break of day
But dusk quickly comes
And the sun sets in the horizon beneath
Even the day must take its rest
Good night Lagos street


UKEMEOBONG OWOH