Atimbo Road Poem by Tony Adah

You would wonder what they do
With earth floor clean thatched huts
Flanking the road,
If you went further in
The flies and bees and ants and reeks
From the gourds
And the breath of men and women
All smacks of palm wine.
The bush is lush
And the men have lust
Puffing cigarettes, talking, laughing
Cuddling their free girls.
The wine is good relished with endangered
Species of pangolins and porcupines pemmican
In sauces deep in chili peppers
The tall palms of raffia
Wear gourds in between fronds
Like hydrocoel between the thighs
Of man and tall and short tappers
On an inclined ladder climbed up
To bring what made men and women
Tick on Atimbo road
And unfortunately, Atimbo road
Is endangered and engulfed by development.