These holes you see in my shirts
Are not the signs of poverty
But the marks of survival
The scares you see on my back
Are not the emblems of sorrows
But the spirit of resilience
It is I whose tears created the oceans
Upon my head the sun has fallen
Upon my back the rain has flooded
The serpent has beaten my feet
The lions have feasted upon my skull
I am the black boy
Whose bowel has known hunger
Whose lung has tasted fire
Whose eyes have seen betrayal
I am the one who saw death face to face
And yet refuse to die
Because I survived it all
© Olatuja Oloyede
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