The Slave Chain
By Jessica Reilly, 5th Year
The darkness of the ship’s hull engulfs
Like the coffin it’s inevitably leading to.
Bodies everywhere, dead or alive
I can no longer tell the difference.
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The ship lurches on stormy seas
The chain around my neck biting deeper.
Rattle, crunch. The metal snake chokes me,
Then releases me, denying me the peace of death.
-
Remembering, my mother’s desolate eyes as
Chained like dogs, the white men
Marched us through our plundered town.
If only the scene could be unseen.
-
The days and nights are indistinguishable,
No food, no water, just rats everywhere.
Their tiny claws scurrying all over,
Sometimes nibbling, checking your still alive.
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The stench of sickness and rotting corpses
Overpowers the senses,
Leaving those still conscious
In a constant state of nausea.
-
The moans of my people so close to death
Are silenced by the landing of the ship.
A land of thieves awaits us,
Thieves who have stolen our lives.
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