pact
By Alvin Kathembe
poetry
a gang of two:
me and you—
walking in the breeze.
whiffling through the tulgey wood,
looking for a tree.
we happen on
the perfect one:
tall, and tough, and green.
a surge of hope
a length of rope—
such a pretty scene!
you hold me close, you kiss my nose
you don’t say anything.
then you slip in the Stolypin
and take it for a swing.
a bunch of plums,
a lunch for one—
crumbs on picnic mat.
sit below a creaky shadow:
it flits this way and that.
the sun is bright
a shade of night
lie, wait to be found:
morning dew
a tooth, a shoe
half-melted in the ground
***
Alvin Kathembe (he/him) is a writer from Nairobi, Kenya. His poetry has been featured in Dust Poetry Magazine, The Lumiere Review, Old Love Skin: Voices From Contemporary Africa, and other publications. He co-edited down river road's third issue—'Asphyxia'. His short stories have been published in Jalada, Omenana, Brittlepaper and Equipoise, available on Kindle. Find him on Twitter @SofaPhilosopher.