Masters of War

By Abass Sesay

A piece dedicated to all who feel Despair and are Afraid.

Born at night, laid a little boy in the arms of his mother who had loved him even before his heart was formed.

Hands with the tenderness that could lay all the chaos of the world to rest.

Her mind became a cathedral to give thanks and praises for such a beautiful boy.

“Abass,” she whispered my name in honour of an uncle,

echoing throughout the land that she loves.

Mama, so happy to see her little toddler wobbling, learning to say his first words; his mind set free, it could journey beyond the edge of the earth.

But then, the horror came.

Masters of War,

with their shackle mentality,

they came bringing horror at our doorsteps,

set into display their art of chaos,

using bombs and explosives to rain terror.

They came killing dreams for what?

Diamonds!

Well, here is the real cost of the “Sierra Leone Blood Diamonds.”

I find myself hiding in my own little space,

alone and afraid to look at myself.

I lost a hand to this senseless war, but mama lost far worse;

her husband and mother were killed.

As if it was not enough, she was stripped of her confidence.

Esteem devoured - mama was raped.

No wonder she suffers mood swings,

for I can but only imagine how much pain she disguises just to give a little hope to her dimming star,

“Abass,” once the beauty the moment she saw me breathe.

The truth is, though I have been a casualty in many battles even after the war,

I was never angry nor afraid to become who I am.

Nightmares invade my dreams,

but I still have to hold onto these dreams,

for they told me change was coming,

and eventually it did.