Manhood


There is a boy in a man
and a man in a boy,
one heart beating
in two chambers,
or two hearts beating together
in one chamber,
one singing
and the other dancing,
or two voices
singing out of tune.

There is a boy in a man
and a man in a boy,
two images painted
by three letters
on the canvass of clay,
or one image
unscrambling three letters
glued together by design.

In all this mystery,
I wonder
if the mantle of manhood
is framed by the strength
of the boy in the man
or the man in the boy?

2011.George MacLean Akurunwa