Along the way from very many goodbyes

I let my heart hang on the driver’s wheels

A tough black man with a heavy voice

Rolling his car like a snowball on a winter’s day

I said a loud whisper

I left too far to end up somewhere I don’t know

With people I don’t know

Panic spills on my eyes

A thousand eyes stare

Maybe they see me different

An afraid black boy with a strange accent

I guess they too found hurt in what I whispered

The car broke down and my heart breaks too

Along the dusty road leading to Dakar

Passengers abruptly squeezed out of the car

Like droplets of rains from the heavy clouds

Smoke alarms and birthed chaos

On a lonely highway, then an ambulance passed

God pitied our waiting and sends down his magic

The car started again

Smiles renewed on tired faces

And the journey continues.