Nan

By Asha

And in the wisdom of the eyes
She passes down the tales of what she’s seen before her
Why some things are the way they are
And how things came to be
She’s seen a lot in her time
Though we’ll never truly know how much
But her tales talk of beautiful misfortunes
And things we could never imagine
Clear blue seas and coconut trees
Long sleeves and banana tree leaves
But
She’s also seen those who walk amongst the trees at night
Seen the world fall apart from beneath her feet
Sailed beyond the reef around our sweet home
And fought wild animals men here wouldn’t dare to
She’s stolen liquor from her father’s cabinets
And hidden love letters from the village boys
She’s dived in oceans that spirits roam
And taken her mother’s earrings for a Saturday night at the beach
when she was meant to be in bed
And in the wisdom of the eyes
She keeps a hold of those stories
And keeps them alive
For those are stories only she can tell
And bring to life