AIRBORNE...

I was asleep

And suddenly I wasn't

I must either be floating or flying

But surely I was in the air

Soaring in the morning skies 

My flight took me to a market square

So much hustling and bustling

At the north end of the market

I saw a crowd gathered

At the centre of the crowd

A young boy,eight perhaps 

Was being beaten by an elderly man

Some in the crowd shouted 'Amosu!'

Others screamed 'Witch!'

The young boy's pleas fell on deaf ears

I tried to land but my body couldn't move

It seemed I have been cursed only to watch 

He was beaten till he collapsed

And the crowd dispersed

I shook my head in dismay 

I made a brief stop at a crusade ground

The cacophony of voices

With intermittent shouts of 'Amen!'

Almost drowned the preacher's voice

There,just beside the pulpit lay a young girl

She couldn't be more than nine 

'Wicked marine spirit,Come out!'the Preacher ordered.

And the congregation,facing the girl

Cast and bound the evil spirit

I looked at the little girl

The tears in her eyes could not hide her confusion

She just lay there, sobbing 

Suddenly I found myself in the operating room, surgical knife in hand

I tried to shout but no sound emanated

The facemask pressed on my nose and mouth

I turned and saw my Consultant fully gowned

A pregnant woman lay on the table

'Prolonged obstructed labour,'he said 'No fetal heart tone.Cut,I'll assist'

We brought out a fresh stillbirth 

In an instant I found myself in the ward

Consoling the woman

'Doctor,I want to show you something'

She unwrapped the body of her dead baby

'See this?' she pointed at a scar on the baby's forehead

'I did this to him the last time he came' 

'He is Ogbanje'

I just stood there, mouth agape 

As I turned to look at the woman

She was no longer there

I looked around me

I saw only empty space

As I looked down

I saw a cluster of buildings with roads in between 

I was airborne