Jahara A. Solaiman
Ramadhan in Gaza
A crust of bread for them,
Already a blessing,
While we,
With our ingratitude,
Whine of the plenty
That is our iftar spread.
The sunset Adhan of Maghrib
A reminder
Of having made it through
Yet another day.
To us, just a signal that
To eat, we may.
Their Taraweeh,
Prayed in the open
On the hard earth,
Amidst the rubble
And the rumble
Of an explosion unexpected,
While we on full stomachs
Wait to roll up the mat
And head home.
Them,
Aware that,
To fast another day
They might not,
Nor sight
The crescent moon
Heralding the Eid,
Nor have their kin
To celebrate with.
They,
With their tribulations
Spanning the years.
May Heaven be the reward
For their tears!
A Grocery Shopper’s Thoughts on Grief
Grief comes
Consumed in cups
Sometimes in spoonfuls
But otherwise,
No exact serving size.
It comes packed in boxes
Or in jars and cans
Tightly sealed, yet
Ready to be opened
At a moment’s notice.
The ingredients are a mix
Of mostly tears,
A smidgeon of hurt and regret
Or a dash of memories
That leave a bitter aftertaste.
Always in stock,
Life’s store shelves
Are full of it
Ready for either the frugal shopper
Or the impulse buyer’s taking.
Grief comes in
In a variety of packaging,
And a hefty price tag,
But no “Consume Before” date on the label
So Sanggibo a Ranon a Piyatay o Satiman a Tadman
(A Thousand Good Memories Destroyed by A Single Mistake)
Treasured memories
Are a-plenty.
In the thousands,
More maybe.
Overflowing the heart
Till they were
What it only knew..
But it only took
Just one mistake,
A careless word
A mindless deed
A single blow
To painfully shred
A whole,
Delicately pieced together.
Such is human nature.
One misdeed
Makes a stranger out
Of those thousand joys.
Ode to the Marawi Fog
Hand in hand
The fog and cold go
Like lovers at the promenade
On a winter morning stroll.
Oblivious to the shivering throng,
The pair smother all creation
Nonchalantly,
With the misty cocoon
Of snappish cold.
A veneer of glossy damp
airily drifting.
The sun must have been sent away,
For this pair to bask
In their icy honeymoon.