What Was It Like In The Belly Of The Whale Poem by Sarah Mkhonza

Have you ever been sent to a destination
And ended up in another, and then had
To face the only question; What was it
Like in the belly of the whale?

No biblical story is as funny as landing
Inside a big whale that has swallowed
fish, frog and crab, and minced them
Into a stew, and you inhaling the there after
Dinner smells inside the whale and asking
How you landed there.

There is a good picture of the unforgettable,
That lands you there in your mind, for all
Things happen in stages. You walk the walk
Of a lost prophet, and end up with people
Who cast lots, and ask where you come from.

You stammer excuses that say it is not you,
The immigrant from another land that causes trouble,
But the wind that blew you in that direction,
And everybody can tell you are a fibbe, r who
Is skilled in the art of mendacity.

You sit among the group and look like a lost
Soul, for you do not fit in no matter what they
Can give you to wear, or eat, for it turns in
Your stomach and you burp and they ask,
Hey guy, from whence did you come?

You finally beg to be let out into the
Raging storms, for you know the parachute
Has not come and then get out there
Hoping the sea will not do you in, and
Then the splash that can fill the lake
takes you near your village! You get out and
Right there is the sign. This direction,
It says and you go there and find the
police car that has them catching you
And shackling you, for they ask you how
You ended up in Liechtenstein when you
Had been sent to Africa.

You sit there and say let life take its
Course for you can only answer one question
Not many. What was it like in the belly
Of the whale? They ask and you give them
The only answer you know. Bad enough for
Me to want out. They laugh for they have
Seen the likes of you so sure of themselves,
When they begin a migrants's journey and so unsure when
They end it. The only consolation is that
The inside of a jail is far better than
The inside of the belly of the whale, for
Prisoners welcome you with curiosity
Wondering what crime you have committed.
And, when you tell them that the only
crime you committed was that you lost
Your sense of direction, they give you
A thumbs up and welcome you to the club.
Then you remember, they have a green card
And you do not. Should have asked them a
Question about that and not done what every
Migrant does; wonder what next because that
was close. This being swallowed was real close.