Black Boy, Dreaming

Kehinde Badiru

Moonlight. Plan B Entertainment.

When I grow old, I want to look
back, with my short-sightedness
forever undergoing correction.
            I want to remember the little
Black Boy Dream: black eyes,
            curly hair, clear wishes, red lips, new shape.
I want to be proud of that legacy —
            all the favorite moments where
life read like my mother’s favourite novel.
I want to have forgotten how sadness
grew heavy through the barriers of my beards.
            I want to hold on to the memory of
my Black girl’s smile and see it reflected in
            the eyes of my children. And together
we pick night beads, throw stones, and
watch abundance at the beach
behind our big house — dreams captured by the
            lens of the water’s waves.
And we will dream between our fingers, and
            have joy for a thousand lifts…

Kehinde Badiru is a Nigerian writer, poet, editor and illustrator. He is the author of a Poetry collection and a memoir. Kehinde teaches creative writing, and is the editor-in-chief of WriteNow Literary Journal. He is notable for his love of urban radio and jazz. He lives in Lagos, Nigeria, and freelances as an editor and writer. @Kehindebadiru_