Trapped In A Noose Poem by Ridwan Olamide

That instant,
that I seized to hear,
that I saw it all,
even with my eyes shut,
I had tied the noose,
and I could barely wait,
for the freedom that awaits,
or that I assumed.

Woe to me!
I had never been so mistaken,
I saw not what I expected,
what I bargained for, clearly it was not,
Forward, I dared not move,
certainly not a willful choice,
return, I could not,
even as my entire being yearned to.

Sunk in regret,
I lie in wait, albeit a painful one,
for the day I hope not to see,
for that day, I leave this torment for another,
Hardly a surprise,
foolhardy I was, seeking for freedom,
which had I had bountiful,
but rarely ever used well.

I wait in this partition,
Doomed. Had I known then what I know now.