Child's Play, by Chelsea Nahai Awang

Chelsea Nahai Awang
@chelseaawang911330
25 days ago

Cold noodles in blue plastic lunch boxes
goody-bags hard earned through musical chairs
We were
A bit too exited to be marching
To class, 7:30 in the morning
A bit too exited to be writing
Essays on 'how I spent my holiday'
Then, after school,
Exited to have friends over to play
those games that never got boring

Scratched knees from climbing trees
Shoes abandoned, or long lost
Warm afternoons and odorless sweat
Evening baths, three kids in a tub squealing
Unaware of our bodies, our voices, difficult choices
Only warm hearts that burned with fever.

Cold water in the fridge and eyes on the prize after a long day of play.
I became every spy movie I'd ever seen
Sneaking in at 6:30, telenovelas on the tv.
That motherly voice calls, to my dismay,
to say: That's enough playing for today

I Watched my dust scuffed age mates disperse
To calls from a dozen different homes
I shouted sullen goodbyes from the window
We could not admit we were really tired
Tired, dirty and ready to do it again tomorrow

#AfricanChildhoodMemories
#ChildhoodinAfrica
#nirclepoetry
#Poetry

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