Lagos Fire (POEM): Could have been me, or you...

Could have been me, or you...

Caught in that catastrophic inferno,
with our identity as burnt offerings to a realm in the sky,
a place where we do not know.
And our skin cooked till its sour,
blood parting like the red sea on red sand,
and body stiffened with odours that the sense can't discern.

Could have been me,
Leaning on a rickety danfo seat,
with ears plugged into hop music while jumping on twitter trends,
curing my loneliness with the gullibility of the social media,
and hoping that the day I was retiring from will be a shadow to the day I was journeying into.
Then suddenly engulfed in flames, with my aspirations and gone too soon.

Could have been you,
Strapped to your car seat in traffic,
Honking rhythmically to your car stereo, in beautiful  anticipation of being in your lover's arms.
"Get home safe babe," he had whispered, without knowing that was the last time ever.
Then in a blink, your heart was set ablaze, only this time not by your lover,
it was death tearing you apart from him, like the marital vow you took.

They could have been ours,
Pupils in uniforms, singing harmoniously as they cheer themselves home.
Relishing their favourite TV show and a healthy dinner from parents who wouldn't stop until they are satisfied.
Then like a moonlight tale,
a dark cloud gather in day light and choked them to a place of no return,
Now they will never graduate,
and daily will their families grieve; of hope, withered.

Could have been anyone of us,
Hustling for tomorrow,
Sneaking into the city,
Running from our fears,
Returning home with a good news,
Frustrated by the state of the nation...
Then enveloped in horrifying death all for vanity.

Could have been you and I,
Two jolly friends, trading words of encouragement in desire of a better tomorrow.
A day that will never come.

Perhaps you and I weren't there, but we all died in that accident yesterday, even if it was for a minute.

My heart bleeds,
For the victims.
I am in mourning,
For the ones whose family will never know for sure that they died in that fire,
keeping false hope alive, that one day they'd return.

If it wasn't you, be reminded that to live is to die, the life you own isn't your own. Such disheartening irony!

May the Lord deliver us from evil.
May He heal our lands and hearts.
May the soul of the departed rest in peace.
Amen.
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