The Word is an Egg

Posted on Feb 19, 2014 ★ by A.Sakyiama

My tongue is a pink fire
Don’t let it set your ears ablaze
…

The Word, the word
Is an egg:

If it falls on the outcrop
Of a stumbling tongue

It breaks
Ungatherably.

Excerpt from the title poem in The Word is an Egg by Niyi Osundare (2002). Kraft Books, Ibadan, Nigeria.