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Am a teacher with GDSS Jigawa state y @ Am a graduate of federal university Kashere, Studied English Language
Bauchi, Nigeria
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The road that forgot it's name
<p><br/></p><p><br/></p><p>This road used to rave a name. </p><p>Elders said it at dawn with kola in their mouths. </p><p>Children wrote it in dust with sticks. </p><p>Drivers sang it to stay awake. </p><p><br/></p><p>Now the signs are gone. </p><p>Or shot down. </p><p>Now mothers pray before they say "I'm going to town." </p><p>Now farmers plant, then run. </p><p><br/></p><p>The road remembers tires, </p><p>but not the people in them. </p><p>It remembers sirens, </p><p>but not the songs. </p><p>It remembers blood that dried too fast, </p><p>and checkpoints that ask for everything </p><p>except your safety. </p><p><br/></p><p>We used to travel for weddings. </p><p>For funerals. </p><p>For school. </p><p>For jollof in another state. </p><p>Now we travel with our hearts in our throats, </p><p>counting kilometers like beads, </p><p>calling home at every bend </p><p>just to say "I am still here." </p><p><br/></p><p>The government calls it "a route." </p><p>The news calls it "an incident." </p><p>We call it by the names of those who didn't come back. </p><p><br/></p><p>Nigeria, </p><p>when did our roads become cemeteries with movement? </p><p>When did distance become danger? </p><p>When did "Are you there yet?" </p><p>become the most sacred prayer we know? </p><p><br/></p><p>The road hasn't forgotten. </p><p>We have been forced to forget it. </p><p>But one day, </p><p>we will stand on the asphalt again </p><p>without looking over our shoulder. </p><p>We will teach our children the old name. </p><p>And they will drive it </p><p>with windows down </p><p>and music loud </p><p>like it was meant to be. </p><p><br/></p><p>Until then, </p><p>we hold our breath </p><p>between towns, </p><p>and hope the road </p><p>remembers how to bring us home.</p><p><br/></p><p><br/></p>
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