A Tribute To Love And Lost

Salihu Muhammad Ebba

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A Review Of Adamu Yahuza Abdullahi’s 20-02-2024

“20-02-2024” is a heartfelt poem by a stubborn Artist: Adamu Yahuza Abdullahi, a Nigerian poet from Kwara state is a fellow of Muktar Aliyu Art Residency who has garnered notable recognition, including a Best of the Net Nominee and second-place winner of the Hassan Sulaiman Gimba Esq Poetry Prize and the Bill Ward Poetry Prize for Emerging Writers 2023. This impressive background informs the emotional depth and mastery evident in “20-02-2024,” a poem that is a searing tribute to Adamu’s best friend, late Suleiman Auwal (may his soul continue to flourish in peace), who died before his eyes, mere hours after complaining of a headache. In the poem, Adamu confronts the anguish of helplessly watching his friend struggle for breath, eyes bulging like a frog’s, teeth bleeding, and arms outstretched for help. Though Adamu couldn’t save his friend, and perhaps couldn’t save him through poetry either, in this poem, he finds a way to come alive through his words.

The 13-stanzas couplets, published in the 2024 Summer Issue (6:1) of Chestnut Review, explores themes of grief, loss, mortality, trauma, and the fragility of life, conveying Adamu’s anguished emotions and helplessness as he grappled with his friend’s sudden passing.

Adamu’s 20-02-2024 first stanza reads:

“I watched you die, my good friend. I stood

there, helpless—like anything before fire.”

This reveals the depth of Adamu’s connection to Suleiman. Although he witnessed his friend’s passing, the line implies a sense of emotional proximity. The phrase “I stood there, helpless like anything before fire” illustrates Adamu’s overwhelming sense of powerlessness. This shows how devastated Adamu was when his friend died. In this opening stanza, Adamu conveys a poignant picture of his grief and helplessness, using simple yet powerful language to express his emotions to his readers and the world.

The second stanza then reads:

“blind and armless like water. what use

are arms if they can’t save me from myself?”

This poignant phrase is poetic with the use of poetic devices. “Blind and armless like water“. Water is an element that flows and adapts to its surroundings, but it can’t see (blind) or act (armless) on its own. Adamu himself to water, suggesting he feels powerless and unable to control the situation he has found himself in. Just like water, blind and armless. Then the rhetorical question, “what use are arms if they can’t save me from myself?” reveals Adamu’s introspection and self-doubt. Questioning the value of his abilities (represented by the arms) if they can’t even save himself from his own thoughts, emotions, or actions. This implies a sense of inner turmoil and self-destructive tendencies, highlighting if they can’t save him from himself, his arms will be useless, (and if arms are useless, Sàdakállahul a’zeím).

“20-02-2024” also showcases Adamu’s deep connection with late Suleiman Auwal. The line “Auwal, at your janazah, the Imam said nothing bad comes from God” evokes patience and acceptance of qadr (destiny), which is central to the Muslim faith—that everything good or bad comes from God. Suleiman Auwal’s death made Adamu emotional to the state the poet started having issues with how the ground swallowed his friend saying “..the ground swallowed you as if you were the first sporadic rainfall“. The vivid imagery of the line was also recognized by the publishers and featured as one of the eye-catching and inspirational lines of the year. I, too, affirm this verse; “…tell it anywhere: the world’s ugliest thing is silence,” shows how the poet’s voice is essential in the face of loss. To emphasize the strength of love between him and his late best friend, Adamu implies wearing his friend lifelessness like a skin (imagine), he pleaded to be glorified in his ruin. Through this poem, Adamu masterfully conveys the complexity of losing a loved one, he then concludes the poem, dearing his friend, with poignant messages.

Lastly, despite not knowing late Suleiman Auwal, as a reader, I was deeply moved by Adamu’s portrayal of his friend in this poem. Each word is an enthralling charm, to which I couldn’t help but proceed with this review. To you reading this review, here is a moment to read the masterpiece and please don’t forget to offer a prayer for the late Suleiman Auwal.

Salihu Muhammad Ebba is a Nigerian writer/poet from Niger state. is a bright and ambitious individual, currently studying at Legend International School Minna with a strong foundation from Guided Medal Model School, Minna. He is also a member of the Hill-top Creative Act Foundation (HCAF). His work has been published/forthcoming in Kalahari Review, Double Speak magazine, Ikike Arts, synchchaos and others.