It was heady
the overheard talk
as one beast of burden
held another
for George
to ride to a Congress
where Henry was going
to wax poetic
about liberty and death
But I didn’t really need their talk
to know about freedom.
I just had to remember
what life was like before
on the Senegambia.
Life there was pagan
and imperfect
but it wasn’t chained,
branded or hobbled;
and my skin color wasn’t a disease
actively legislated against
by people who believed
in the Curse of Ham.
So when the British said
if we reach them, we would be free
I forswore being enslaved
to a future first president.
It wasn’t the first time I ran
but it was the first time
I was successful.
Related Links:
Cassandra Pybus – Epic Journeys of Freedom
Tichaona Chinyelu 