Until Return - Issue 3

Rhythms Unheard*
by Aida Hasan

Force me into darkness
Will me into silence
with ignorance and hate
Lose me with false images
Paint over me with lies

But understand
I will not shadow walk
I will not stay here in darkness
while you weave this tapestry of despise

Because
I walk with the rhythms of my people
The ebb and flow of despair and fortitude
grief then strength
loss then victory
darkness then sun

From beneath the rubble I will emerge
My Palestinian blood courses with fervor
Over 50 years of occupation, we will not sit down
Generations of oppression, we will not forget

I am taken by this rhythm
It breathes life into stagnation, hope into doubt
Truth into falsity, courage into fear

Dust myself off and move again
against the mighty roars of injustice

There must be no room for oppression
no room for violence
no room for blind eyes
and unheard cries

Listen to my melody
Feel the rhythms of my people
They walk to a beat you still have not heard.

*This poem was first published in "The World Healing Book", Beyond Borders, 2002

Back to Until Return Issue 3