‘A Resonant Death’: A Poem After Fatima Hassouna

A Resonant Death

After Fatima Hassouna

By Basman Eldirawi

 

This massacre shrinks homes into tents—

You sing with the displaced birds at its door.

 

This massacre shrinks the light into darkness—

Your camera flashes the truth.

 

This massacre shrinks cities into rubble—

You speak up in a world swallowing its tongue.

 

This massacre shrinks feelings into numbness—

You think of the last idea in a martyr’s head.

 

Did he live enough?

Did he die enough?

 

This massacre shrinks bodies into ashes—

You wish for a resonant death.

 

This massacre shrinks humans into news—

You want your name. You want your name.

 

This massacre shrinks your life into death—

Your presence will always be in the present tense.

Basman Eldirawi (also published as Basman Derawi) is a physiotherapist and a graduate of Al-Azhar University in Gaza in 2010. Inspired by an interest in music, movies, and people with special needs, he contributes dozens of stories to the online platform We Are Not Numbers.