Oh, mum, please…

Shh, shh, hearken! Listen to me!

Listen to him, pay heed to his words.

Don’t just give up, you can save us all

Protect what I’ve done, just rescue my soul…

It is on you, it’s all your fault, stupid kid!

Now my life is done, admire what you did:

You had to be quiet, to stop once he screamed.

Why would you hate peace, oh my little kid…

For I’m going to die, for now I shall leave,

Come visit that place, just watch as I bleed.

As I only blame you, my daughter, my kid,

First my reason to live, now my curse and my sin

He despises my existence, you ruined it for me

Don’t you love your mother, oh dumb little kid?

Then why would you kill her? Why won’t you see?

All I’ve ever asked you was to be there for him me.

I loved you so desperately, I wanted to live,

Me and then me and then me and then him

Shh, shh, listen to us, you daft little kid!

I dreamt war

I got up really surprised

Thought about it for a while

Went into the kitchen and said

“Mama mama it’s so bad…”

We were just living life as always

Maybe didn’t even give a f**k

Safe in our little comfy houses

Every day spent, there was no mark

And suddenly we hear a loud crash

Out of the window we go and stare

“What the heck has just happened?” I ask

Is that a bomb? We weren’t prepared.

Why now, we’ve always lived in peace…

We’re home, shouldn’t we be safe here?

Where is my family, that makes me so rich.

Don’t touch any of them, they are all so dear

So you’re telling me we are not safe anymore…

I counted three bombs, the first hit the floor:

The second was near us, our convenience store

Oh, God, please help us. Don’t hit us no more!

Don’t let this ball land in front of our door

Let us live, it’s not our moment to go

Our backs ache, our ears and throats are sore

We suffer, we are scared, there’s fear in my bones

Oh, why won’t you listen, why can’t you save us

The bomb fell on our roof, it destroyed it all

I had fought with my sister, needed to make up

But now where is she, biggest part of my soul?

Why’s everybody gone, why couldn’t you stay?

You left me alone, I’m surviving this hell

And now is it God the one we can do blame?

I imagine every brick to be a stupid shell

Why am I not dead, why can’t I give up

I still want to live, but I don’t know how it’s done

Shall I blame myself? Maybe I embody bad luck

In the middle of this disaster, here’s where I am sat.

Wait, am I alive? Am I really still here?

Let me check: two legs and two eyes, I can see

But I hear no sound. Have they taken my ears?

Every piece of this body no longer belongs to me.

I try to scream, as loud as I can

But I stop immediately, am I in the head mad?

What if I’m heard by this cruel and wicked land

And it starts to tremble, that would really be my end

So that means I’m selfish, just think for a second.

When the second bomb fell I asked for mercy

Desiring somebody else to be hit by the weapon,

Of life I was still so selfishly and egotistically thirsty.

So that was my dream, or at best a nightmare.

Asked my mum: “What do you think?”

She said: “It’s okay, don’t you worry, my dear.”

Got back to my room, I cried. I’m so weak…

Tahisir Chabi