more than just words

you know her by her diamonds and i know her by her mountains protected by lions embarked on by okadas i know the aunties peeling leaves whilst their children climb trees hunting for an orange that they can sell to me i love to cling to my seat as we manoeuvre through the street tapping my feet to the blazing afrobeats until the blazing sun makes me jump off and run to the girl shouting at anyone who wants a packet of water and i know the beach where the ocean is in my reach where i can see the beauty of my history reflecting back at me you cannot mine the real diamonds of sweet salone the diamonds exist within my soul the souls of her people who kneel down on eid and feast on christmas with their family who understand madingo but carry the blood of temne who speak perfect krio despite being lebanese the people who smile even when they grieve what once was or what she could have been what still can if we choose to see we have suffered enoug

your home is now your cell as the police stand outside to guard the wishes of the warden  who sits in parliament scarred whose job has him infected no firewall to protect him no firewall to protect us spyware left undetected and now we are in our cell no sense of the time everyday is the same for us but gone are another hundred lives and not one of them is you because you are confined no hurdles to overcome no mountains to climb and for that you are blessed locked away from the rest confined you are protected solitary but uninfected no firewall needed to protect us because we have our cell outside there is no point but inside it we can excel