Postcolonial ecocritical readings of Ekanpou’s "I Am Home, Dear Tompolo" show that Tompolo is more than one person; he is a guardian of the land, rituals, and change, whose power is tied to both the environment and communal memory. In this essay, Tompolo’s refining touch on the gold stands for careful, rightful stewardship that must work with the life of the land—rivers, mangroves, forests, and their nonhuman beings—rather than exploitative and selfish control. Using the ceremonial language of "nunc dimittis" and transformation tranches, the piece asks how authority becomes legitimate when it is based on duty, ethical care, and a strong sense of place. Set in Akparemogbene in Delta State, the analysis shows how postcolonial ecocritical thinking can help us see how power, tradition, and ecological health work together to transform individuals, keep communities connected and keep cultural memories alive.
From Ekanpou's poetic reflections, Tompolo is like a helper who holds power in this poem. He is a guard, a person who makes things better, and a symbol of old laws and true beliefs. The speaker asks Tompolo to be there when the gold is made into something useful. He says, “Tompolo, please let loose your refining touch on the gold like a heavy downpour, keeping the gold drenched and glistened.” So Tompolo is not just a helper. He has the right kind of power to shape rough things into something with meaning for the land and its people. This aligns with postcolonial ecocriticism, where power is always tied to the land and its resources. Here, the way Tompolo uses his power on the gold shows that authority must care for the place and its life, not just take things for oneself - selfless
The poem keeps Tompolo as a guardian who protects both people and the land. When the speaker says, “A gold is no gold without your anointed touch,” the act of refining becomes a sign that someone is allowed to lead. Power is not only to command. It must come with a ritual that shows trust and responsibility. This matters a lot in postcolonial ecocriticism, which says power should be tied to how we treat the place we live in. The riverbank, the forest, and the mangrove are alive in the poem and they watch Tompolo’s activities. Because of this, Tompolo becomes more than a person. He becomes a keeper of both nature and culture, guiding the work in a way that helps the whole community stay well and happy.
As someone who refines, Tompolo carries old knowledge. Refining is not just turning gold into something shiny. It is about using inherited wisdom in today’s actions. The speaker asks Tompolo to refine the gold “like a heavy downpour,” a natural force that belongs to the land itself. This point shows a postcolonial eco-ethic where power should work with the land, not over it. Refinement then becomes a show of sovereignty that follows how the land itself moves. Tompolo’s role as refiner points to power that acts with care for the environment and recognises how people and nature rely on each other.
Tompolo also holds spiritual and cultural power. The poem ties power to ritual and ceremony with phrases like “the doctor’s nunc dimittis” and “transformation tranches.” So Tompolo’s power is not only about rules. It has a sacred side that guides people on their paths to healing and change and transformation. The postcolonial ecocritical view helps us see how such power uses place and practice. Tompolo shows a lasting link to ancestors and community rites. The land is not just a stage, but a live part of the narrative. It guides and validates what people are doing to transform themselves. Tompolo therefore, becomes a living sign of authority that comes from both the land and memory.
The way the poem talks about wind, rivers, trees, and the mangrove forest also shows what power should do. These natural parts form a living network that supports the work of refining and healing. Calling Tompolo a guardian means he stands between people and the place they live. The lines about “Flags dance when the wind sings soothing songs” and “Trees bow when the wind twangs her guitar” place governance inside the sounds and movements of nature. This suggests that real power must go with these forces, not fight against them. In postcolonial ecocriticism, true authority respects the place and the non-human life around it.
The setting of Akparemogbene and Delta State adds more layers. The speaker asks, “Decorated, should I still be home to Akparemogbene as my home? Or should I be home to your home in your home in the mangrove forest?” This shows a choice about where one finds home and who has influence. Tompolo’s power reaches into these spaces, shaping positively where people feel they belong and how their identities grow through their links to land and ritual. This movement between places echoes worries about lost control and the need to keep power focused on local life and ecological health. The poem thus makes Tompolo a steady force in a land that could be unstable if power comes from outside.
In short, Tompolo in Ekanpou’s poem is more than one person. He is a link of power that joins guarding, shaping, and spiritual authority. He shows a way of governing that is connected to the land, ethical care, and cultural memory. Through the lens of postcolonial ecocriticism, Tompolo’s power is strong because it looks after the land and life, respects ritual and memory, and guides transformation to help the community. The gold tests this power: will Tompolo’s touch bring renewal that helps the land and people stay alive, or will power become a force that takes too much and harms? Ekanpou answers by making Tompolo a guardian who keeps harmony between people’s hopes and the living world, a power that fits the land and its needs.
EBIKABOWEI KEDIKUMO - writes from Ayakoromo Town
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