Dangerous Love

Dele laughed sarcastically. Okoro said: ‘I must admit it is strange. What can a painting do to anyone, eh? A painting can’t hit you, can’t shoot you, can’t make you faint, can’t drive you mad. And yet they seized your painting. Very strange.’

went to the park some days ago and found the body of a dead girl.’

‘What?’

‘We saw a dead girl’s body. It was mutilated. They had shaved her hair.’

‘Really.’

‘Yeah. We went to Dele’s place and phoned the police.

Okoro had fought in the war, first as a boy

cast our nets out into the darkness and draw in ourselves. Sometimes, if we are fortunate, we also bring back...’

‘Bright corals.’

‘Bright things.’

How can we be happy if we lie to ourselves?’

‘We can’t.’

‘Things have got to improve. But first we have to see ourselves clearly, as we are.’

Then Dr Okocha fell silent. After a while he said: ‘The original experience must be the guide. But what you make of it, what you bring back from it, the vision, call it what you will, is the most important thing.

thought that war was only a game that children played. On the main road, near the police station, I saw the corpse of a dead man.’

She began to see herself as a purveyor of sadnes

They walked through scenes of unbearable poverty, their faces lit up by the sun

For her he became a spiritual husband,