The Line of Aj’a

 

Her skin is smooth, dark toffee.

Her rough black hair is neatly plaited.

Evenly spaced cornrows cover the

Graceful curves of her skull

With an ancestral helmet

Bordered by large hoop earrings.

The tight rows escape at her neck

Into long braids that twist

And flow like rivers.

Braids so long, they reach all the way

Back to Africa—

Where her tall, slender foremother

Balanced water by the river,

Where giraffes stoop low for a drink,

Where humanity grew proud and independent.

   Her roots.

   Hair roots.

   Strong and lasting.

(© 2005 Connie S. Tettenborn)