I told you before
Dreams are for those in slumber
You can’t gather fortune under the stars
You eat what you sweat
And sometimes
You’ll eat your black skin too
It will taste like bitterness passed down from generations
Awaiting someone less broken to exhale
But you are heavy like your father’s worries
You walk and you drip all over
Then you try to dream
And you are met with darkness
Never stars
Dreams are for the well fed
You are starving
You reek of generational poverty
Your lips never open
They only open when you eat your skin
Black boy
Ntaoleng Patience Labane is a poet from the Free State. Currently she has her own podcast going called Her Thoughts, which you can catch on Spotify, Anchor, Radio public, Google podcasts, Oncast.