Our elders, they tried

To stop, to stop

Stop the tide of the people

As they began then to change.

But the talk of our customs,

Of our blood, of our soil

Speaks much, much softer

Than the brimstone and hell.

Me and my shadow, we stayed close to our home,

As we felt the tides turning, we stayed close to our home.

We ground our yams and we harvested our wheat,

We prayed to our gods, then massaged each other’s feet.

Back then, when we made love then,

As we felt the tides change

It became, not for pleasure,

Not for pleasure anymore.

Not for pleasure, no more pleasure,

Not for pleasure anymore.

But for hot reassurance as we felt our lives slip.

As we felt the tides change, ‘neath the soles of our feet.

We made full bodied, head back, sweet- sweat love.

Such full bodied, head back, sweet- sweat love.

*

On the night when they came, they did not play the drums.

Like when we sacrificed a ram or a goat to the gods.

On the night when they came for us, they did not play the drums.

No they did not play the drums, they did not play the drums.

I heard the fire before I smelt it, I smelt it –

I smelt the fire before I saw it, I saw it –

I saw the fire before I felt it, I felt it –

I felt it, I felt it – O gods how I felt it!

I saw it, I saw it tearing through our home.

Mine and Funmilao’s home,

My shadow and me,

Just our ordinary home.

Ohhh, fire no dey crackle,

It dey roar, it dey roar

No dey crackle am, crackle

It dey roar, it dey roar.

They had us surrounded,

The white men at the front.

Rallying their troops,

Of the people that we loved.

And I looked into her eyes,

As the fire it dey catch,

As the smoke it go rise,

As our throats it go touch.

I looked into her eyes,

Amidst the panic,

Between our screams.

And I knew she would not run.

She would not run, she would not run.

Outside to them

She would not do it.

She would not run, she would not run.

Outside to them.

Surrender.

She would not do it.

So nor would I.

And we held each other, as the flames licked our feet.

And we screamed chest to chest, in the caustic heat.

We held each other as our house burnt down,

As our life and our dreams, they were razed to the ground.

We held on to each other

In defiance, as we died.

When it was over, our spirits rose

With the smoke, to the sky.

Babatunde You never told us. I thought you died from disease.

Yetunde I did. Na Hatred now. You no dey hear? Powerful sickness. It swept through my village and killed me. And my love.

Teju Where is she now?