Kayode Afolabi’s most recent poem to appear here was “Hurtful Relics of an Old Shoe” (July 2017)

Mr. Duke’s good morning
By Kayode Afolabi

I woke up loudly happy, today
the cock crowed unusually reassuring.
The water, this morning, was colder
and more gentle than had ever been.
In watery dribs and drabs,
I heard the droplets hum
a song of elation as they splashed
down my head.
The sky was everything a nursery is,
the baby sun like all other dawns before
was out in all its glory as i walked.
Yet not indistinguishable from the dawns before,
there was something remotely personal
about the sun’s smile today.
As I stepped in, half an hour early,
the lady behind the firm’s inscribed logo
smiled a smile brighter than the smile the sun smiled
and said “Good morning Mr. Duke”.