“The Bird was Crying…” An Unwritten (GAZA) Poem on an (ISRAELI) Bomb
“…we found a bird in our home / chirping, chirping / chirping, meaning it was crying…” / Ahmad speaks, from the ruins of Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza
“…we found a bird in our home
chirping, chirping
chirping, meaning it was crying…”
Ahmad speaks, from the ruins of Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza
“Self-elegy is an established genre in classical Arabic poetry, with roots going back to pre-Islamic times.” Sinan Antoon, translator, in the Preface to Mahmoud Darwish. “In the Presence of Absence” (2006)
“There was no such thing as Palestinians.” Golda Meir , Israeli prime minister, June 15, 1969
by, Ahmad, (Nuseirat refugee camp, central Gaza)
“This is our dream:
It is the only one we have
we have put our hearts into it
this is our savings our money
we saved our money shekel by shekel
so we could build an apartment
and have land
…but as you can see the house is gone…
now we have to leave too
we’re all going to leave, we are leaving
we have no refuge now
we need to go and set up a tent
like everyone else
we need find a place to stay
we’ll be like everyone else
we’re not even involved in politics
we’re citizens and have displaced people too
and for the displaced among us
may God have mercy on them
for they have no fault nothing
and the story goes like this
I was sleeping in the middle
of the night
around 1 or 1.30 normal time
I was sleeping
an explosion happened
I thought our house is gone like this
I thought we were hit
I felt like it was over
we were sleeping
it felt like I was in a dream
still dreaming
our ears were ringing
dust – I can’t see anything
it’s like night
and we can’t see a thing.
Then my brother shouts
and the whole house is shouting
screaming
And we don’t know yet
(we’re still not fully conscious
still not aware of ourselves).
I got up. I saw something.
My brother was shouted.
I started calling in the street
“Oh people, come help us,
come bring light for us!”
“Bring light! Come”.
And the people came to light up.
And my brother under me
and the house stones above him.
I hold the stones.
I start removing them.
And my sister’s husband
buried under the rubble.
The whole house the whole thing
destroyed.
We found my sister in the street.
The displaced people amongst us,
we started finding their flesh in the ground.
Another one, half and half…
And one more…
We found my mother thrown on the street
and my little brother
embracing
him.
We found them,
at the house door.
And my little brother – his eye is gone
and my mother – her entire face is gone
and
her
legs…
I swear I don’t know what to say
And my sister who was in the room
sleeping too
the rubble was all over her.
(Now my sister needs to go
and get treatment.
She’ll need at least
two months.)
Her ribs are broken.
Her legs are broken.
Her back.
Her neck
all broken
while
she was sleeping.
And we’re not involved
in this or that.
We didn’t expect it at all.
I swear if we had expected it, maybe
if they had warned us
it would have been easier
better
better the property
than the family
we are not upset for the house
we are upset about
those
who are gone from us
and this was our dream
but the dream didn’t come true
it evaporated.
Now we feel like
we are still in a dream,
still in a dream
we’re all the same.
I keep saying
I’m still young
i haven’t seen anything in life yet.
I’m like these people:
…in God’s hands
what can we do?
To each his fate: that is
what will happen
to him.
We have a bird
the Ayesh Family, they used to raise
birds, pigeons and ducks
raise all these kinds of birds
we found a bird in our home
chirping chirping
chirping meaning
it was crying
the bird was crying…
the bird was crying
the bird was crying…”
Words by Ahmad, (Nuseirat refugee camp – Gaza)
(Transcribed & adapted by séamas carraher)
Nuseirat refugee camp is a busy and crowded camp located in the middle of the Gaza Strip…
https://www.unrwa.org/where-we-work/gaza-strip/nuseirat-camp
29 November, 2023. The Al-Nuseirat Camp is a built-up area in central Gaza, established for Palestinian refugees after 1948. Airstrikes have destroyed buildings in the camp area, killing residents.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-middle-east-67570173
November 25 – “An Israeli airstrike hit … Nuseirat refugee camp – south of the point in Gaza where the enclave’s population were ordered to evacuate.” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/nov/25/scarred-for-life-the-families-still-seeking-dead-amid-gaza-rubble
Original Video
Ahmad speaks of his love for animals in front of his bombed house, Nusseirat refugee camp (11.2023)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRKDzhrLte4
Video posted by Rebecca Ruth Gould
Poetry and Protest
https://www.youtube.com/@poetry-and-protest/videos
https://rrgould.hcommons.org/erasing-palestine/
Image 1 (Cover)
Gaza girl killed by Israeli forces in the Israeli offensive on Gaza Strip. Day 14 of the offensive. Gaza War (2008–09).
Al Jazeera, CC BY 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Some Online Responses to Ahmed’s Words
“My heart is with you Palestinian people” @leticiabolanos5312
“I feel pain, guilt and shame at not being able to do anything for my brethren in need… I am making dua in all my prayers. I know dua is the biggest weapon of the believers. But I still feel pain when I eat, when I drink, when I know my brothers and sisters are at the mercy of Israel for their food and water and accommodation. Sometimes I eat my foods that I loved before but now they taste like they have lost their flavour. I feel pain and helplessness when I sleep in my bed and my beloved Muslim family sleep in tents. And I am angry and hurt that our leaders did nothing. Nothing!!!! They sat in their comfortable homes while bombs fell on our brothers. They just dressed smartly and came on TV to condemned Israel for her crimes. Ooooo big boys! They did nothing except pledge some money. And we don’t even know if that money ever left their safes. I hope you all can stand before Allah and try to worm your way out of your duty to protect your brothers and help them in their hardships. I would hate you if you weren’t Muslims. May Allah guide you. You are an embarrassment to the ummah and to your own souls.” @IslamIsTheSolution98
“Well we all can blame Hamas for it curses on Hamas the shaitan.” @garyboss583
“isreal bombed these civilians. That was their choice, don’t blame Hamas. That is all on Isreal.” @Cui-bono987
“Now why won’t these children want revenge? Everything is stolen from him. He doesn’t have a future like a normal child. Israel! Stop what you are doing.” @michellesdairies8411
“Heartbreaking…”…@zameisie7016
“Even the bird was crying.” @opalia8997
“The Most High God despises the shedding of innocent blood, oppression, lying, stealing, trespassing, pride, greed, sowing seeds of discord among men, hatred, anger, impatience, violence, injustice, unkindness, unfairness, failure to care for the poor, orphan, & widow, failure to be welcoming to the stranger, lack of love & lack of mercy.
The Zionist State of Israel is guilty of all of these…
I pray that the Most High God intercedes on behalf of true obedient believers everywhere; healing our hearts, minds, & bodies.”@veronicaharwick9013
“The Palestinians have suffered enough. Stop the suffering…” @abidb.601
Hostilities and casualties (Gaza Strip)
29-November, 2023
According to the Government Media Office (GMO) in Gaza…
The office … stated that, since the start of hostilities, more than 15,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, including about 6,150 children and 4,000 women. The GMO, which is under the de facto authorities in Gaza, has been reporting casualties since the Ministry of Health (MoH) in Gaza stopped doing so on 11 November, following the collapse of services and communications at hospitals in the north.
The fatality toll since 7 October includes at least 198 Palestinian medics, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health; 112 UN staff; 70 journalists and media workers, according to the Palestinian Journalist Syndicate; and at least 15 Civil Defense staff, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense.
Overall, 75 Israeli soldiers have been killed in Gaza since the start of the Israeli ground operations, according to official Israeli sources.
https://www.ochaopt.org/content/hostilities-gaza-strip-and-israel-flash-update-54
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