Rooting

by Oladejo Abdullah Feranmi

Honorable Mention, Poetry, Create | Encounter 2025

Softest legs, hardened pace; wading  

the marshes of time one step at a time.  

You taste life when you inhale with your mouth—  

every brittleness, every gust that never knew storm,  

rushing to the tunnel of your breath,  

finding light in your lungs; breeze swaying  

the leaf alveoli to the rhythm of dandelions.  

Like sleeping time that dreamt of spring  

forgetting how crusty autumn lips were,  

eyes hollow into nightmares, dragging behind  

a bag of tears. But the emptiness of some days  

is not enough. The day forgets its ray hands,  

and nothing soft might touch you until life  

chases the sun into the west,  

hoping your eyes can gaze just outside the tunnel  

of the horizon into something new.  

The meadows resurrect those who remain.  

Everything else is rooting for you.  

But you can still walk into something new,  

let your steps fall into yourself and forget  

how long a shadow can be, enough to slip  

into every tomorrow you approach.

Artist Statement:

My work centers on the human cost of violence—how it shapes memory, identity, and the will to live. I write to honor the dignity of those often silenced or unseen, and to reflect on what it means to stay human in inhumane conditions. I hope readers engage with my work gently, allowing space for feeling, reflection, and care.