Contributors
Aisha Mohammed
Alexis Teyie
Anthony Okpunor
Ayokunle Betiku
Bayowa Ayomide
Chidera Ike-Akaenyi
Chiedozie Kelechi
Chiwenite Onyekwelu
Chukwu Emmanuel
Doose Ahua
Nicksha Mwanandimayi
Ohaka Thelma
O-Jeremiah Agbaakin
Oluwadare Popoola
Oyindamola Shoola
Rachel Magaji
Seun Lari-Williams
Tega Onobrakpeya
Tiwaladeoluwa Adekunle
Tobi Nifesi
Wale Ayinla
Interviews
Alexis Teyie
“We Must be Good Stewards of Our Gifts”
Tobi Nifesi
“It is Important to Remind Ourselves that We Are Not Alone”
Have you downloaded our latest issue? The literary works in “Isolation” will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Poetry
A MEDALLION IS A SMALL THING by Oluwadare Popoola
A medallion is a small thingby Oluwadare PopoolaFor Michael Olajumoke Joys come in measured orders, and when you arrived from the desert, I...
RELIC OF GRIEF by Oluwadare Popoola
Relic of Griefby Oluwadare Popoolaa coloured thing, black coloured as a friday wake-keep, arch heir of death, skin lurking as a memory site for the...
A MAN’S BORDERLINE TO OVERCOMING LONELINESS by Oluwadare Popoola
A MAN'S BORDERLINE TO OVERCOMING LONELINESSby Oluwadare Popoolathere is familiarity, a twinkle in our eyes for unknown places that beg a birdsong to...
ABRIDGED PATHOLOGY OF A SYSTEM UNDER LOCKDOWN by Ayokunle Betiku
Abridged Pathology of a System under Lockdown by Ayokunle Betikufirst the body embraces confinement as a fast interlude within the immune...
(PIANO-TUNING) by Alexis Teyie
(piano-tuning) by Alexis TeyieInterstice, a staggered release— out of step, but thankfully, ever tense, and trembling in concert (first dead dog:...
THE MEETING by Seun Lari-Williams
The Meetingby Seun Lari-WilliamsA pandemic meets an old man on the road. Who is this who is not afraid of me? It asks. You must be religious, I...
WHAT WE CARRY HOME by Chiwenite Onyekwelu
What We Carry Homeby Chiwenite OnyekweluI’ve been here for far too long, I feel my body steeling into the soil, making roots. Nothing grows...
TELL THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SUMMER by Tiwaladeoluwa Adekunle
Tell the Truth about the Summerby Tiwaladeoluwa Adekunlehow you find the soil of your joy then the ceiling. the sweat. the unmuted sadness. the...
CENTO FOR LONELINESS by Wale Ayinla
Cento for Lonelinessby Wale AyinlaA sound was wound in my head. Yes, I know words call things into being– claw at the bight’s grain. It is unlikely...
THE SOLITUDE OF NIGHTS by Chiedozie Kelechi
THE SOLITUDE OF NIGHTSby Chiedozie Kelechimy days are a calendar of wants. i want you beside me. i want to run my fingers through your small black...
ELEGY FOR THE FIG TREE by Agbaakin O-Jeremiah
Elegy for the fig treeby Agbaakin O-Jeremiahbut what business do i have with the living? we all become slaves to memories & chains...
DEAR DIARY IS THE SADDEST THING YOU WILL WRITE ON A LONG QUIET NIGHT by Anthony Okpunor
dear diary is the Saddest Thing You Will Write on a Long Quiet Nightby Anthony Okpunorthese days i dine alone. the world is at the other side,...
CENTO FOR ISOLATION by Wale Ayinla
Cento for Isolationby Wale AyinlaTell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. The way that the sea fails to drown itself every day. I...
ONCE THIS IS OVER by Seun Lari-Williams
Once This Is Overby Seun Lari-WilliamsOnce this is over, I shall run into the arms of each morning and take in the deepest breath. My eyes will make...
APOCALYPTO by Rachel Magaji
Apocalyptoby Rachel Magajiblood_ in my village, a six-year-old girl became a canvas & her once clear skin was a shrine carved with obscene...
HOW THE DOCTOR AT WARD C EXPLAINS ISOLATION TO HIS COVID-19 PATIENTS by Chukwu Emmanuel
How the doctor at ward C explains isolation to his covid-19 patients by Chukwu EmmanuelDay 1 When your tender body begins to quiver in this small...
I KNOW by Bayowa Ayomide
I KNOWby Bayowa AyomideIf you ask me, I may know why the caged bird cries. I used to think of deserted water as the loneliest, then I realized the...
ARTEMIS by Seun Lari-Williams
Artemisby Seun Lari-WilliamsThe world has stopped for you. It holds its breath in fear of you. Centuries-old traditions abandoned overnight like...
HOW TO JAIL A BIRD by Bayowa Ayomide
HOW TO JAIL A BIRDby Bayowa Ayomide- or how to bail on your bed. First, one needs a nose respirator or a lab coat, a science-student or a surgeon....
ENDING AS A CHAOS OF TRUE BEGINNING by Oyindamola Shoola
Ending As a Chaos of True Beginningby Oyindamola ShoolaTimes when my eyes tear into dawn; when I negotiate between being awake and being alive, or...
A PORTAL OF CRISIS by Chukwu Emmanuel
A portal of crisisby Chukwu EmmanuelIn the news, the incident of death rises geometrically. I know because something is lost when you search for it....
Fiction
FALLEN SCABS AND DRIED SORES by Ohaka Thelma
Fallen Scabs and Dried Sores by Ohaka Thelma The prevalent bustling in Òkè-ìlá was driven by fear and the constant need to survive. Mama Ayo walked...
WHERE ARE WE by Doose Ahua
Where Are We?by Doose AhuaI take a break from scrolling through my Facebook feed. Every post has a #COVID-19 #quarantine #isolation or...
FINDING REDEMPTION by Chideraa Ike-Akaenyi
Finding Redemptionby Chideraa Ike-AkaenyiIt is August. You feel the damp and the cold of the rains sliding into your body and wedging itself between...
DEAR DIARY by Tega Onobrakpeya
Dear Diary by Tega Onobrakpeya Thursday 19 March 2020 Dear diary, I saw him today. Remember him? The guy who offered me his seat in a crowded BRT? I...
NonFiction
THE CHURCH: A BASTARD OR A LEGITIMATE CHILD? by Nicksha Mwanandimayi
THE CHURCH: A BASTARD OR A LEGITIMATE CHILD? by Nicksha T. Mwanandimayi According to the Oxford dictionary, ambivalence is the state of having mixed...
QUARENCIA by Aisha Mohammed
Quarencia by Aisha Mohammed Sometimes, I remind myself that I am only 18, that I have an old woman’s mind. That the spirit living inside my body is...
Appreciation
Thanks to our guest editors for this issue: Rasaq Malik handled poetry; Ope Adedeji polished the stories; Tolu Daniel chiselled the essays into shape. We sincerely appreciate all the amazing contributors who trusted us with their literary works.
