I've been wanting to do something different for so long, but I didn't realize what it was. It is this: write about the way I feel in the places I find myself.

Jun 3, 2016

Street Notes #3

Brief Thoughts in Places I’ve Been

Accra, Ghana

The officer peers at me; his name tag reads Kwame. Half in jest, half serious, “I can stamp your entry depending on what you decide. You have the Ecowas passport, you can stay as long as 16 days if you so wish”.

Harlem, New York

I don’t smoke cigarettes, but if I did, I would want to do it like she does. With glittery nails, the hint of an South African accent lilting her English, her hair in an afro framing her face, her smile like sunrays in the rainy season. In her fingers, a cigarette looks like a ballpoint pen. I would want to do it like her, with her.

Kilaberi, Niger (In A Restaurant Sitting Next to A Wedding Party)

Voulez-vous acheter la bière Niger?
Comment?
La bière Niger? C’est pas cher
Ah bon? Je vais prendre 6 bouteilles
6 mademoiselle? Vous êtes sur?

Umuahia, Nigeria

Your streets flow seamlessly into each other, your people do the same.

Springfield, Massachusetts (from the Peter Pan Bus Stop)

I first think: I hope he doesn’t stand next to me. And then, shame engulfs me like smoke — choking, smattering shame. Then I think I deserve the shame I feel.