Love Poem: When Muse Whispers
Assefa Dibaba Avatar
Written by: Assefa Dibaba

When Muse Whispers

11:45pm

i was at Andrew's, 
she says

oh, i see, i say

you remember Andrew?
she says

i don't, sorry,
what about Andrew?
i say

i told you
i had a crush on this guy 
7 years back in the PhD
remember?
she says

i don't mind, i say

listen, 
after long hangouts together 
and many frozen dreams 
i realized he was a gay,
she says

oh, i see, i say,

and he was married 
married as two husbands
and the other husband 
who also adopted a child 
cheated on him
and they divorced...

she continues

oh, i see, now, i re-member,  
i say

what shit is "oh, i see, i re-member..."? 
5 hours i was with Andrew tonight,
with my gay friend, and once in a week, 
why are you mad? 
she says

listen, i used to mind,
but not now, girl friend or gay friend,
i say, self-assuredly but uneasily 

...when you act superior 
unsuccessfully, though, 
you sound lunatic, 
she says

and worse,
when two lunatics join
not knowing where to go 
and stumble in darkness 
of their ignorance of each other 
they are nothing but walking sacks of shit,
i say

oh, i see, she says,
mockingly

you are the dog of night
who barks at something 
he cannot see,
she adds

oh, my...! I scream, am I alone,
where is my 
"My Brother's Keeper" gone?

now, my muse, Atete, jumps in
she walks me out
and whispers:

"Ase, listen! you can't run
from anything like this anymore
face it! make it or break it!"

"oh, Atete, now i see," i say
to my muse--

my muse aims to sing 
songs of Love and Hope for me
but there isn't time...

and i come back
to balance:
the struggle within 
and 
the struggle without--

and to think of this
uneventfulness of Being...

now, before we go,
let us close this goddamned story thus: 

when your muse whispers
when you don't listen
when there is not much to remember 
when there is not much to forget
you are at dead-end, at an impasse-- 

maybe you made them a Priority 
maybe you are to them only an Option

you can't tell turkey by feathers

let your Life and your Death be
not like theirs...

if Love betrays 
Luck doesn't...

listen, beautiful loser!