Kids in Gaza

Collage of some of the kids that I have met and played with in Gaza. 

Hanan Mikha’il Ashrawi — From the Diary of an Almost-Four-Year-Old
Tomorrow, the bandages
will come off. I wonder
will I see half an orange,
half an apple, half my
mother’s face
with my one remaining eye?
 
I did not see the bullet
but felt its pain
exploding in my head.
His image did not
vanish, the soldier
with a big gun, unsteady
hands, and look in
his eyes
I could not understand
 
I can see him so clearly
with my eyes closed,
it could be that inside our heads
we each have one spare set
of eyes
to make up for the ones we lose
 
Next month, on my birthday,
I’ll have a brand new glass eye,
maybe things will look round
and fat in the middle—
I’ve gazed through all my marbles,
they made the world look strange.
 
I hear a nine-month old
has also lost an eye,
I wonder if my soldier
shot her too—a soldier
looking for little girls who
look him in the eye—
I’m old enough , almost four,
I’ve seen enough of life,
but she’s just a baby
who didn’t know any better.


#CeasefireNOW