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Because You Said, "Enjoy!"

BECAUSE YOU SAID, "ENJOY!"


It's getting harder to enjoy the day
When the neighbour's son is questioned
For growing his beard,

When the girl with a cloth
Over her head
Is mocked for having no sense
Of progress, of modernity, of civilization.

It's getting harder to enjoy the day
When the little girl
With the foreign sounding name
Is the last to be picked
On the cricket team,

When elders warn the young,
Don't say it aloud
Don't send it as a message
Delete everything you have
When all you have is nothing.
Nothing upon nothing upon nothing.

It's getting harder to enjoy the day
When a mob murders a man
Cutting him to pieces
Ecstatic in celebration,
While they stay busy
Studying the type of meat
He was carrying,
And they are still
Ecstatic in celebration.

It's getting harder to enjoy the day
When they say
They all say
They have weapons
Weapons to protect the land,
(To guard, to defend - they insist.)
A force stronger than the military,
And the rest look on in silence.

It's getting harder to enjoy the day
When the only help you get
Is thoughts and prayers,
And an inquiry into the son's whereabouts
And a warrant filed
And an arrest carried out
And a notice stuck
Crying
Beware! Beware!
Here resides a criminal.
Without trial.

Suspicion and fear
Is now everyday make-up.

It's getting harder to enjoy the day.
There is nothing left
To hold on to
There is nothing left
To enjoy.


- Maryam Kaleem


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Comments

  1. Arshiya SayyedFebruary 25, 2018 at 12:44 AM

    Sad reality!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yasser RiyazDecember 29, 2019 at 8:27 PM

    A bitter truth of today of course. But every culprit would surely be punished as the judgment is promised by our almighty where there is no place for bribe and corruption.

    ReplyDelete

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