2022 Spring Contest First Runner-Up: What It Means When a Man Tells You to Call His Name
By Joshua Effiong
a new being is reborn
with skin as soft as the mouth of a spring
the camouflaging of his broken pride begin
but tonight he does not climax before you do
you remind him that he still carries his identity
chaotically woven ego blooming chrysanthemums
sometimes he crumbles like Jericho’s wall
sometimes he is a replica of Gibraltar
how many times does he liquefy his weaknesses
& builds a pool in which he baptizes himself
he relives the memories of his boyhood
enveloped in the harshness of his masculinity
what again do I offer a body
that understands the science of decay
at the mention of his name
his mind becomes a forest of flowery dreams
their complexities—a portrait of fainting hope
& what is a name
if not a reminder of what was
what is & what is to come
***
About the author:
Joshua Effiong is a writer and artist from the Örö people of Nigeria, studying Science Laboratory Technology at University of Calabar. His works has appeared/forthcoming in Shallow Tales Review, Rough Cut Press, Madrigal Press, Titled House, Augment Review, Selcouth Station Press, Rising Phoenix Review, amongst others. He is also the author of a poetry chapbook, Autopsy of Things Left Unnamed (2020).
Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons
