This poem symbolizes the fear I have been feeling towards the lost souls of the Middle East. These people have been engraved in my heart, my mind, and my soul. Their whispers of pain and suffering are constantly on my mind and cloud my thoughts. As I battle college for the first time as a Middle Eastern teenage girl, I fear my aspirations and goals and wonder if they are good enough to help make a difference in the world. I can’t help but feel extremely humble for everything in my life as I realize people right now have absolutely nothing, no food, no water, no electricity, and no joy. Basic human rights have been stripped away from Palestinian people for the past seventy-five years. I wrote this poem from the point of view of a Palestinian child. It is absolutely devastating knowing that these little babies are innocent and yet have to constantly fear their everyday life. No child deserves to suffer; they deserve peace, happiness, and a life filled with smiles and laughter. 🙁
AN ODE TO FEAR
You are hardwired in my brain
There’s no escape
You run through me like a disease in the vein
You fit me, how ironic you’re the perfect shape
As you roam my mind, I question my everyday mistakes
The uncertainty of life makes me question my fate
Afraid of the control you hold over me
Oh fear, I love how you give me long-lasting headaches
You make it unbearable to hold the weight
Like a branch, that’s gripping tightly to a tree
I love how you surround my life
With every step I take, you somehow manage to find a way to follow
You cloud my mind, my breath, and my soul with a knife
A worried pain right now, today, and even tomorrow
You make my heart flutter into a million pieces
The voice that whispers so loud telling me that I’ll never be good enough
You push me to my limits and beyond
Make me open my mind, my heart rate increases
New goals, motivations, aspirations cling onto me like a cuff
I call out to you, and you wow me with the way you always respond
You keep me on my toes
And prevent me from being alone
Because of you, my dreams rose
You’re the longest friend I’ve ever known
I love how you hug me with the most intoxicating grip
You make it hard to breathe, but have taught me so many things
The happiness, the relief, and a life with constant growth
Always with me, attached to the hip
Conquering every anxious doubt that stings
Surprisingly, my biggest antidote, I find myself stuck under your oath
