into an apparition. Between a stampede
of voices fascinated by this holiday & a sky
ruptured by a flight of firecrackers, my father
cleaves a pound of meat, paints his hands
like the scene of a bloodbath that is soon
to follow a tide of water through the drain.
Silence imprisons our voices which we both
agree is our trademark in the capsule of this time.
I look for my father while steam orbits the room.
The world beyond my walls eats the season’s fruits.
Happiness is broken into bits so it does not bypass
any family. So everyone has a piece to hum a rhythm
of content about. In the mist that drapes the kitchen, I
hunt for conversation but the God of miracles turns me away.
My mother appears, a ghost formed by vapor, but what to say?
–
Michael Akuchie is a poet of Igbo-Esan descent. His chapbook manuscript, Wreck, was selected by José Olivarez to win the 2019-2020 Hellebore Poetry Scholarship Award. He is a recipient of the 2020 Roadrunner Review Poetry Prize and an Orison Anthology nominee. He tweets @Michael_Akuchie.