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(Title after a line from Momtaza Mehri’s poem ‘Mouthwash’)   ‘A home is only as safe as flesh’ – Dionne Brand   You share a border with the Uber driver That makes you kin —here His margins reach over yours and continue running over You notice how time draws an axis over your necks You give the fisherman along this coast another name because of it He opens the glove compartment, throws his service papers Kismayo, 1973 He recounts entering the city, possibly the women, but doesn’t confess You glance to your side and recognise only your reflection It’s late in Nairobi and you don’t know the city well enough to confirm he’s driving you home You’re wearing this burgundy book, a life jacket