I close my eyes
And fool my senses
And take barbed wires
For picket fences
Redolent of the ostrich
That did not want to see
Her world as it appeared to be
Imagination growing
Knowing
I’m ALMOST free
I close my eyes
And fool my senses
And take barbed wires
For picket fences
Redolent of the ostrich
That did not want to see
Her world as it appeared to be
Imagination growing
Knowing
I’m ALMOST free
I still see it
Through my brain’s eye
The dappled floors
As I skipped the halls
Sunshine covering me
Heat much too dry
School in the desert
Memories passing by
I
Let
Them
All
Go
This familiar wind
Hot and dry
Carrying pieces of my old self
As it hurries by
And smells that no longer exist
Perfumes no money could buy
This familiar wind
Carries pieces of my old river
Euphrates
Reminding me of nights spent together
Eating ice cream
Watching the candles light up the stream
Making wishes
Dreaming a dream
This wind passes much too quick
And I rush looking for a jar
Or a bottle
I want to save you
For my selfish reasons
And trap you
Like the memories that trap me
In a place that I no longer know
If it still exists
If it could resist
The bombings and the shootings on a small town
How could you, wind, turn this around
And take me to a moment of peace
As I float
Another piece
Of history
That no one remembers
Organic matter
That’s easily recycled
Easily blended
Easily camouflaged
Between the wind and the sand
I reach out my hand
As if to hold yours
My old self
You did good
You escaped that neighborhood
Where no child, or adult
Was safe
Where bombs did not discriminate
Stuck between love and hate
You soared far
And maybe you have the winds to thank
Or a God somewhere
Watching a dreaming child
And allowing her to yet dream
Oh how these dreams have changed
How your life has changed
Old self
You did great
I was hoping for an alien invasion
Maybe then
The question of
“Where are you from? “
Could be easier answered
And I could say
“Earth”
And no one would follow with
“But where were you born”
I was hoping for an alien invasion
So I could no longer be called an alien
Such as my luck
No alien cared to make my hopes true
And I still look at you
Unable to speak
The language I grew up
Speaking
For hours, in lines we waited
Feet bare
Flies and mosquitoes hung in the air
The afternoon sun could not be kind
As it left no shelter for us to hide
Until we got our sacks of flour and some rice
Enough to fill our bellies and dampen our cries
She remembered a sky glowing red
Noises in her head
Figures that screamed
Others that whispered
And some that bled
She remembered joyful wonder
Cries of surrender
Stars that wept
Nights when she slept
On a warm earth
Nothing else beneath
No sheets no shields
She remembered before she was this magnificent tree
She was a woman
Wondering what she’ll be
When this earth turns to dust
Silent was the crowd
After moments of obstreperous cheering
As they learned that her death
Was not in the script
Was not in the play
But they couldn’t help staring
Did you ever think to bring a second candle?
The optimist in you did not think the darkness will last
The wax dripping off of its handle
As it burns much too fast
But I who’s seen darkness, I who was birthed away from light
I hoard all the candles
Fearing that they might
Not be enough
I stretched out my dusty wings
Shedding thousands of years
Away
Breaking the silence of my peers
Turning our dark tears
To fire
Reigniting an ancient flame
Reminding the world of our name
As I flew higher
I could no longer deny my true desire
I was born
For this rebirth
Born to inspire
I thought it magical
Surreal
That the night sky
Be filled with steal
And change to day
Flash after flash
Of the bombs falling my way
I thought it a beautiful end
To an uneventful beginning
The 13 year old is no longer begging
To stay alive