We know that everyone processes grief in a different way, Ókólí Stephen Nonso is not an exception. In his poem, “The Moon That Never Beamed”, he writes about the death of a loved one, the vacuum which time does not effectively fill, and the residue of memories which stays with us long after someone we love passes away. The poem is brief but it is nothing short of potent.

– Editorial Team

For Neme

The moon I sketch is a grieving heart
that had never beamed—- never
even to our ancestral river (Eziudo).

That confluence, where the kindred spirits

of Udeh & Okoli once drank from.

Neme!
Yours is like a sun whose rays did not peep
through the corners we never knew—

the corner beside the plantain leaves
where Eriama once lived till she dropped her bones,
& returned her dry flesh to mother earth.

Neme!
Mamie said death is a baby, it grips our hand
and leads us tenderly to the grave.
But your body misinterprets darkness for night,
& you waved us good night.

About The Author

Ókólí Stephen Nonso is a Nigerian writer whose poems have previously appeared in Feral Journal, Ngiga Review, Praxis Magazine, African writer, Adelaide Literary Magazine New York, The Quills, and elsewhere. He’s a joint winner of the May 2020 Poets in Nigeria (PIN) 10-day poetry challenge, and also the first runner up in the Fresh voice Foundation Poetry contest 2020. His short story has appeared in Best of African literary magazine. You can say hello on Twitter @OkoliStephen7.

Photo by Misha Voguel from Pexels

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