Voices slam against a wall “boys!”
…and again “windows!”…and again “running!”
Voices dance to fire dimmed,
till they grow faint,
till they dare not speak.
Mirror mirror on the wall
why are these tongues running still?
…and again “windows!”…and again “running!”
Voices dance to fire dimmed,
till they grow faint,
till they dare not speak.
Mirror mirror on the wall
why are these tongues running still?
We are taken by things.
Once, they walk,
they knock,
they drown in a puddle.
Once, they walk,
they knock,
they drown in a puddle.
Voices are in fragments,
and we remember…our father was a preacher
and we remember…our father was a preacher
“Boys!” “Windows!” “Running!”
We remember our names…
What is your name?
We are…We are…I am
We are…We are…I am
“Boys!” “Windows!” “Running!”
What breathes in us wears nakedness.
Once, we took it off.
Just once, we put dawn in our hair.
And they were torn off
off our skin,
off our bones,
off our marbling hue:
Once, we took it off.
Just once, we put dawn in our hair.
And they were torn off
off our skin,
off our bones,
off our marbling hue:
“Boys!” “Windows!” “Running!”
We are on a kitchen floor,
clad in nothing…
clad in nothing…
(Editors’ Note: “Call Us Boy.” is read by Matt Peters on the Uncanny Magazine Podcast, Episode 67A.)
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© 2025 Somto Ihezue
