Mary's Song Poem by Ajibola Adeoya

Mary Joe was this couples' first baby
After eighteen years of trying
Mary Joe was a blessing
Mary Joe was a lesson
Little Mary was beauty; with our eyes we behold it.
That Sunday morning
Before the altar
It was Mary we were dedicating
I remember the preacher saying,
"This baby is a sign that Gods covenant with us is not broken"
Before the altar
We came out dancing
With hearts full of thanksgiving
In the offering basket we dropped our token
For we know, with Marys' testimony, we can now keep on believing

When Mary was two
She was to start school
It was early in June
The rains had started that year a little too soon
And as the dam, so was our joy full
Cousin brothers, Cousin sisters
Distant uncles, Distant aunties
Little nephews, Little nieces
Many more relatives, all came to cheer Mary.
The living room was a little rowdy
Auntie Roseline was in the room dressing Mary
While her mom packed her launch box
Her dad with her uncles played ‘'catch up''

I still hear her saying,
' don't you all know it's rude to stare at a lady
besides grown ups shouldn't act like babies'
she sent us a shock wave of laughter
and we were dazed thereafter

For she came out looking,
Pretty and radiant
Preppy and valiant
As smooth and smart as capsules
More like a properly prepared soup, garnished with all the necessary
ingredient
She was set to conquer, but something else was imminent
After a week in kindergarten
It was a different tune we were singing
‘'Mary was a genius "
Her teachers were quick to notice
She brought us smiles
She lit up our lives
In this dark world, she was our light.

As the morning dew were settling
The news was breaking
We knew the worst had happened
We were just afraid to face it.

25th of December was a Sunday morning
At St. Theresa cathedral in Madalla
There was a bombing
The damage done was colossal
It was immediately after mass as worshipers were dispersing
A dozen Hail Marys' didn't give us a premonition
A motorcycle drove by,
Dropped something wrapped in poly-ethylene
The guards got curious and went close to examine
What happened next is best imagined
The content went off,
The impact sent the roof on an errand
The louvers shattered
The gates came down crashing
Body part littered the car park
more than half a dozen cars exploded
A family of five got trapped and were roasted
On the ground it left a crater
In our hearts a scar
‘cos somewhere in this tragedy was Mary.