“You stole my joy, you murdered my happiness” – Amoaa Oppong-Kwakye

I am a 22 year-old Ghanaian lady. I am a poet.

After watching DRY, I couldn’t control my tears. I felt the pain of Halima. It was my first time of hearing about Fistula and I really want to help girls and women in such situation.

Below is the poem I wrote, I dedicate it to all girls who go through such situation.

CHILD NOT BRIDE
Under the silvery stare of the moon,
The children sat to listen to soul refreshing tales
Beneath the starry blue skies,
We smiled and laughed and galloped our ignorance of the world away
It was in the nakedness of the breeze that I learned to smile my soul away
And I enjoyed it; A perfect peace
And out of the blue came the fifty nine year-old weary man, Alhaji (FUSENI)
His defective smile exposing his cola nut stained teeth
With a keg of palm wine
And a saddened cow in hand
That moment, every joy I have known turned to ashes in my mouth
The very ground on which I stood gave me up
The warm uterus I knew turned cold
The strong arms that protected me slipped off
Like garbage, I was disposed, abandoned, rejected,
That night, my guardian had darkness for a smile
My innocence forced out of my being
I had tears for supper that night,
That devastating, dismantling, smashing, shattering night,
The stain on my body could not be cleansed
I battled with unknown demons he possessed
And as if by magic, he planted his seed
On my tiny piece of fertile land
I sat helplessly. watching my innocence slip away from me
In the glare of the sun
The moments I spent with my friends
Crushing right in front of me
I am just a child but you snatched my childhood
You stole my joy
You murdered my happiness
You strangled my future right before my eyes

I’m a child not a bride!!

My body and soul and spirit and being
You tortured
When the seed you planted in me withered and died,
You called me a witch
You stole my joy, you murdered my happiness
You strangled my future right before my eyes

I am a child not a bride!!

****

Thank you Amoaa for sharing this lovely poem. You described Halima’s pain so vividly with your words.

Have you watched DRY? What did you learn from it? Please email info@stephaniedaily.com and share your story on DRY to join the Movie Club.

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SL