90 The Meadow Mama’s House chisaraokwu Umuahia, Eastern Region, Nigeria, 1967 At the end of a red-dirt road sits a home Wrapped in blue metal railings, its red-tinned roof The haven for once welcomed pale-skinned foreigners Carrying bayonets and for men cloth-wrapped in sun. Under its veranda, children played In the puddles of the early morning rain Until the aroma of mama’s jollof rice & plantains Reminded them of their hunger. In the sitting room, women gathered To discuss provisions for the coming harvest Their bare & sandled feet pressing Thin the rug Mama’s husband had gifted her. Its walls held the secrets of men & listened To the change swirling in their mouths. Mama’s house was shade In a summer of uneasy heat. …on the day when the air bombs tore holes through sacred spaces & men ran with rifles alongside their sons & daughters stitched burlap to shield their breasts from prying eyes when the thick hot sun & prickly bush competed with
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