The Promise Poem by GK Talabi

Here we are
Here we stand
At the junction
Where three roads meet
Jason is holding my hands
Looking straight into my eyes
Promising me of his definite return.

My eyes tell him
I need stronger reassurance
My mind replaying his unfaithful past
As if by telepathy he sensed my thoughts
His index finger he dips into the sand
Touched his tongue and said,

"I swear by heaven
I swear by earth
I swear by anything
That can be can be sworn by,
Cross my heart hope to die
If this promise I fail to keep
May my parents forever weep."

I felt strongly assured
He got into the car
And I waved till it became
A tiny a dot on the horizon.

In the village that night
The news broadcast on the radio
A sad story it was
Jason's car was mistaken for another
He was shot and killed by the Police.
An ocean of tears I cried
But his parents
Forever did they weep.