Written piece
A Quilt from Home
Harlord Ankwasa
Uganda
About this piece
This quilt weaves the tales encountered by many like me(Banyarwanda, Rwandese born and raised in Uganda) yet somehow their belonging met with skepticism and hatred from fellow Ugandans. Indeed I'm weaving a tale from home.
A Quilt from Home
I see dad's surname
pinned in the streets.
People picking up stones
to shoot it down.
Grandma has buried
her head in the ground.
Grandpa sways in the winds past
in the echoes of loss.
These patches won't keep you warm.
Banyarwanda piss off
to your roots.
The shadows of tall men
and women with long noses.
The Nile exits home
with torrents of tears.
Victoria swallows the shame
of passports and borders.
It's dad's surname again
there it lies on the cross.
Crowned with thorns
like the man from Bethlehem.