Letter From Leah
Poem — In honour of Leah Sharibu
I shared their joy when they were freed
And earnestly prayed to be released
I am Leah, the lone Dapchi girl left in chains
A price I had to pay for my Christian faith
A faith for which I’ve been made a slave
Days became weeks and weeks now years
Each passing day increasing my fears
Whether or not I’ll ever be spared
And return to embrace family and friends
On one of those gruesome nights, I helplessly laid disrobed
As my captors stripped me of my cherished childhood
And added to my burden the travails of motherhood
But I’m more than conquerors, for I trust I’ll be freed
My hope has not failed me
Neither has Christ, for whom
I’m a victim
I am Leah the lone girl left behind
To suffer the fate of Christ divine
© Mudi Johannes
Leah Sharibu was abducted alongside other girls in February 2018 in the town of Dapchi in Northern Nigeria by Boko Haram Terrorist group. The other girls but Leah were released. She remains in captivity for refusing to renounce her faith.
