The fear grips me
Deep-deep down my marrow
The Culprit?
A cassock deliverer confronts me
No-no-no I am a fair player – a lover
Gaitily I move closer
She groans still in horror
But curse nobody, not even me
I hear push-push-push
I say push-push-push
Oh-oh I share in the sorrow
But only her, only the sacrificial lamb
I pray-pray till tears fail me
My manliness and visage betray me
The contraction must be over
My muscle twisted, the legs trembled
Then like a rainbow he bolted out with his
Ear-piercing shrieks from the butcher’s slab
My majestic African prince from the womb
Yes-yes I am the victor, macho man
Of responsible men’s club
An automatic PTA member
I swagger in fantasy
The honeymoon must go on
For now and the future
Until the arrival of a full team
To honour my sacrificial lamb

This poem by Yushau A. Shuaib was written on the birth of his first child on March 29, 1996