Olayioye Paul Bamidele is a writer and a student of mass communication. His works have appeared or forthcoming in Spillword, Lunaris, Artlounge, Afreecan, Ice Floe, Terror House, and elsewhere. 

Everything Names Me

everything names me – grief, pentecostal babel, spittle gun, 

vodka speech on the pulpit. everything names me – even the

birds call me their prey. when i strode by the sea, a shark asked 

to hide me in its belly. when i farmed my feet at the forest, lions

lend me their teeth. desert perched me in its attic. i own the night, 

it awl me & i cried to it. whenever you hear a growling, know i

speak my grief as i watched it sail behind the moon. i know it, 

when i see it. i have seen one blossom in my friend’s eye, when his

mother was leveled beneath our feet. if you want to know the witty

mead of grief, then read this poem & my fellow black writers’. 

the crochet pattern is grief, stitching into a motif – without it, the

poem is formless. wait, let me give you one: i planted a seed on 

this paper, hoping the vinedresser would grin at its glamour, 

but no! it stings like a yore body, decaying. from this paper, i made

a kite but the wind sliced its razor through the broomsticks. i

rattled the paper into a ketch, the water swallowed it hole. yesterday, 

i saw it mashed with mud. i became a flaw, with a wizened body, 

& slow to strive. it became a wart on me – like the dappled spots on

the leopard. forgive me, i speak in veiled language. never seek

to know further – lest your knowledge be camouflaged. 

Contributor’s Bio

Olayioye Paul Bamidele is a writer and a student of mass communication. He loves writing poems, plays, prose, and essays, and draws his inspiration from things happening around him. His works have appeared or forthcoming in Spillword, Lunaris, Artlounge, Afreecan, Inverse Journal, Ice Floe, Terror House, Ninshar Art and elsewhere. 

Editing Support and Services

Don’t be that writer who underestimates the need for a third eye to take a look at your current and future projects. An Eboquills editor fills the third-eye gap effortlessly. In fact, s/he does so very cautiously, making important suggestions to help you make your work be at its best.

We can guarantee that you will find our suggestions and editorial advice invaluable. You do not need to break the bank to get the best editorial services there is.

Simply fill out our contact form with Editorial Services in the subject line, and we will reach out to you.