THE URGE TO LIE

By Sr. Esther Jeruto Koros 

My friend Okiri Mokiri, wouldn’t help himself lying

He lied about his actual name, his intellectual capabilities

His home village, his missing left ear, his James bond vehicle

His carnal abilities, his wife at home

But there was something true about his lies…..

We believed him.

 

The truth in Okiri Mokiri, lay beneath the talking

He talked at you, until you became an avid audience.

He described his successes until your own achievement felt limb and dim.

In his scars; the missing left ear, the broken tooth, the haphazard air

You would feel guilty at your own completeness.

His carnal prowess from which sprung triplets after triplets;

You would want to rush home and create a life.

He cruised through the bumpy, craggy terrains,

Other drivers parked aside, ashamed at the opulence of their own cars;

Their eyes wet with admiration.

 

My friend Okiri Mokiri, an honest liar;

Died a sudden and lonely death, died by the rope,

I would prefer the guillotine myself; I would prefer to die trying.

I still see his dangling feet sometimes; every day is a funeral in my head

At the funeral was the unwrapping of a gift box;

Deceit upon deceit was peeled off at his funeral

Okiri Mokiri had no wife and children,

Okiri Mokiri drove a stolen vehicle, wanted by cops,  

Okiri Mokiri’s missing left ear was cut off in a robbery,

Okiri Mokiri wasn’t schooled at all,

Okiri Mokiri wasn’t his real name, he was hiding from the world.

Okiri Mokiri’s success story, was an absolute failure, though not in his stories.  

 

The urge to lie in Okiri Mokiri

Stemmed from a deeper wound; well dressed and laced

The wound seemed attractive, almost seductive

I miss the tales and the dares.

 I still see his dangling feet sometimes; every day is a funeral in my head.

I too have developed the urge to lie

If only to forget his dangling feet.

 

© October 2020 

0726179789 

essyjeru@gmail.com