At 8:22 am, she sneaks back into her husband\u2019s house like a thief in the night
\nHe meets her in the hall and pleads with her
\nHe tells her he didn\u2019t mean to hurt her
\nHis words, as always, are met with a smile as bright as the sun now bursting through
\nthe ajar curtain, highlighting her bruised cheek which he kisses
\nHis lips cold
\nShe carries on
\nDaily duties, nausea
\nPhone call gossip, nausea
\nGrocery shopping, nausea
\nIt\u2019s been 2 months a week and 3 days since the doctor told her
\nShe\u2019s running out of time. He can\u2019t know
\nBut still she carries on her new-found routine
\nAnd tells her unborn baby a story
\nYou, will love yourself first
\nYou will stand bold and command like a lioness
\nYou will create your own rules and dominate your empire
\nYou will not cower in the corner when a man raises his voice or his hand to you
\nHoney, we will raise kings
\nWho will not have to unlearn the lessons our fathers were taught by their fathers
\nBecause we will keep misogyny from their bones and mix respect in their porridge
\nuntil it is embedded in their souls
\nAnd you? You will wear every female adjective like a badge of honour
\nBoards and cabinets will be filled with voices as smooth as flour
\nFrom flowers left to grow, the garden looked a little brighter.
\nLike you, like your future<\/p>\n
Your melanin will not be tainted, as is mine, by scars and bruises by a man
\nIt will glow. It will radiate as far as your dreams go
\nThe song you sing to your soul will not be to refurbish but to replenish
\nYou, my love, are master of your own body
\nCommand it how you want
\nLet it dance to the rhythm of your heart beat and hips strut
\nReality falls on her like a storm
\nShe gathers her thoughts, and her clothes
\nHer mother\u2019s locket, her chipped silver earrings
\nAnd shuts the door behind her
\nRealising that this bright future she paints will need a canvas first
\nChikumbutso\u2019s words beating in her ear like an earworm
\nSo, she leaves
\nFor the sake of her daughter, she leaves<\/p>\n