If I were to come again

If I were to come again
I will grow fat like tabaldi
One in the lineage of baobab trees
A cherished drum in times of drought
If I were to come again
I will be rich like the Niger Delta
A blessed region wet with oil
Powering gigantic plants
And lighting up dark regions
if I were to come again
I will come fresh, long, deep and great
I will be a soothe upon thirsty souls
Lord aquatic king I will be crowned
Like Tanganyika and Baikal
Upon the zenith I will display
The glory of my mother, Africa
If I were to come again
I will come an African soil
Fine and rich upon and beneath
The lush vegetation in the West
A table of food throughout earth’s revolution
The arid South
A huge panel determined
To power the world
If I were to come again
I will come insatiable African
Grabbing the wealth of the south
The corals of the North
The gem of the south
And the gold of the East
Building solidly upon the Atlas
The Africa of my love
With her well oiled delicacies
To feed the world around her
And lick her fingers
Beyond the walls of her own.

————
(c) Adekunle Oluseyi Afolabi