A small Black girl dreams in a twisted storm, 
Her roots entwined between two worlds of pride.
Nigerian wind whispers of soul warm,
Double identity becomes her guide.
Her pride wrote songs of stars she sought to claim,
A childhood dream she carried in her heart.
Yet pride evolved– it sheds the fleeting fame, 
To find purpose in a different art. 
Her pride refused to yield when fear arose,
A child to bear in shadows cast by hate.
Her love a shield, her pride a sword expose,
Against the world’s unkind and heavy weight.
I, too, sing America. Langston said,
A century ago, her dream still spread.

Vivid abstract painting of an explosive burst of color and light, with radiant yellows and fiery oranges at the center, blending into deep purples, crimson reds, and stormy blues. The brushstrokes sweep outward in a dynamic motion, resembling a cosmic explosion or a dramatic sunrise breaking through turbulent clouds.

Tayo is…

  • 42 years old
  • Female
  • Nigerian American
  • Hetero
  • Upper Middle Class
  • Christian
  • A mom

Author’s Note

Sonnets are focused around the following rhyme pattern: ABABCDCDEFEFGG. It follows the iambic pentameter format (10 syllables per line) and is thematically centered around nature and desire. Sonnets should be performed with this intention, following the natural rhythm and cadence outlined. My sonnet explores the relationship between two identities and follows the theme of pride. I explored the idea of wind being the guiding force of Omotayo as while talking to her, I learned that she is in constant motion and is always seeking “what is next.” The sonnet highlights the discovery within finding purpose – at a young age yearning to write music and tell stories and evolving ultimately into teaching and creating a podcast that shares immigrant stories. I wanted to highlight the idea of pride as it relates to the American dream. Omotayo shares that her parents instilled a great sense of pride for her culture and identity and I wanted to reflect that through how she has navigated both of her identities moving through different spaces. The end of the sonnet refers to Langston Hughes’s poem I, too. The poem reflects on Black Americans’ experience toward a white majority culture. The poem stands true for the complexity of immigrants today and the American Dream and how progress has been made, the rhetoric surrounding America isn’t so different.