And then i began to talk, Of dreams and wishes, Of butterflies and snakes Of music and love, And of death. I began to talk, Of guilt and fear, Of shame and girlhood And how they go hand in hand. I began to talk, Of violence in its softest form, And most brutal form, I talk of punches and black eyes. And the promise of repentance. I began to talk, Of tiredness Of the way it takes your breath away, And the way it takes your resolve to live, Cuts the last thread of hope. And so i began to talk, and talk and talk. —Omokushe