Waiting Poem by Olalekan Joseph Ajayi

Where set night does wed
And insects chirp freedom songs
Amidst the glory of constellation;
Where February winds
Sweep markets clean
Defying falling leaves
The poet remains
Awaiting your return

Voyaging in search of
Syllables and syllogisms
Of vineyard and virtue
Surviving a thousand murders
Initiated by non-initiates
The pen-man slumbers not
Awaiting your return

In the stillness of the moonless night
Where even wax refuses to melt
Where countless tosses mats bemoan
The preacher keeps vigil
Awaiting your return

Muse from the Delta
Abandon me not
In the dryness of the valley
Where memories of old seas
Are my companions
Cause rivers to flow
And resurrect verdant lawns
Cause liquid crystals
From overhead
For I long to dance
In a drizzle
In a downpour
And not be dust
In the soles of non-initiates

Muse, My Muse
I stand here waiting