Undo, Ctrl Z, Delete.

I come from a country

where culture doesn't live in books.

It lives

in the woman selling vegetable before sunrise.

In the old man

who still greets strangers like they've known each other for years.

In the sound of the kora.

In the three rounds of attaya.

In home.

But everyday...

it feels like

we're forgetting a little more.

Because I'm a graphic designer,

I keep looking

for the Undo button.

Ctrl Z...

and I'd bring back

The respect

Men had for women and children to adults

Ctrl Z...

and I'd bring back the traditions we traded for trends.

Ctrl Z...

and I'd remind us

that different tribes

were never meant

to be different worlds.

Because I'm a scriptwriter,

I know

every bad script

can be rewritten.

I'd delete the scenes where we hate each other.

I'd write new ones

where every child

knows

where they come from...

before the world tells them who to be.

And because I'm a poet...

I also know

Words don't carry

people home.

Words

just reminds them

where home is.

So if I ever write about The Gambia,

I don't want people

to say,

"That was a beautiful poem."

I want them to say,

"That's us."

Because that's enough.

That's home.

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