The left and right side (David Ishaya Osu)

Central London: everyone seems to always be in a rush. So the right side of the escalator is perfectly convenient for me. But it’s nothing to worry about. London is always in motion, like every other human or natural settlement. I am talking now as a first-timer in London, absorbing the vibes of a city I have always dreamt of.

Dream:

            loop: but who is going to let
                        their kite
                                      fly away—after
                                     the birdsong

Autumn:

           forward silver. The last lotion to be used

           parallel friends. Candlelight through glass & lilacs

           slow sunset. The length of tenor & bass in one night

           both hands. At peace with chocolate & washing machines

Abuja:

           speak to gates, speak
           to creeping yellows

           the first scarf you see
           looks like your mum’s 

           is she a friendly ghost
           you ask. two hands

           around one glass
           no squares, no grey

           no time—you want your back
           on bubbles and you want

           the clock out of your life—this
           place has a dream

           of green and white and
           jazz and wet fingers

 


David Ishaya Osu is a poet, memoirist and street photographer. His work has appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies across Nigeria, Uganda, the UK, the US, Australia, Canada, India, France, Bangladesh, South Africa, Austria, and elsewhere. He is the poetry editor of Panorama: The Journal of Intelligent Travel, and a board member of Babishai NiwePoetry Foundation based in Uganda. David has an MA in Creative Writing (with distinction) from the University of Kent, and is the author of the poetry chapbook, When I’m Eighteen (2020). You can find out more about David on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter