refugee

a refugee in the womb
I feel my world shake
every time my mother does
my sky moves
with her every sway

the bombs pound closer each day
and from rooftops
snipers aim Kalashnikovs
at the grocer
a woman’s back
a child clenching her father’s hand

a refugee in the womb
I feel my world shake
every time my mother does
my sky moves
with her every sway

the bombs pound close
as the stone eyes of men
who stalk the streets,
unforgiving,
followed by thundering shells
the sharp staccato of guns,
bathe Beirut in black

men with stone eyes
rip identities from trembling hands
Muslim, ya allah
Christian, ya rab
wrong turn
      (unforgiving)
no return
      (sharp staccato)
bathe Beirut in black

light a candle, mother
for those who’ve lost their way
follow the flicker of its flame
shadow’s pilgrimage across walls
illuminate the way
for those swallowed by the night

I stretch my palm towards light
towards a city fragmenting
before it ignites

light a candle, mother
help me find my way
to flowing milk and lullabies
to turquoise blessings and
freshly opened gardenias
I want to find my way

my mother paces
hands fluttering across her belly
like fallen birds
like a prayer uttered
without words, a hum
resounding against taut skin

may this darkness pass
may new life begin
insha’allah
let this darkness pass
and new life begin