PALESTINE POEMS: December
by Johann Funk
checkpoint
thirty Palestinians
huddle behind razor wire
against an icy December storm
workers from Israel
returning for eid al adha
shivering for five long hours
soldiers in combat gear
clutching stacks of identity cards
handing them back like candy
1:30 a.m.
Jesh! Jesh!
searchlight sweeping
headlights framing
Nicoletta's outstretched arms
STOP! STOP!
jeep #911019
villagers on high alert streaming toward the intrusion
peacemakers in position
soldiers cocooning
armor plated
tableau of resistance
putting the occupier on notice
Inshallah–if God wills
your 99 names are on their lips
from sunup to sundown
five calls to prayer
punctuating every conversation
bismillaah (in the name of God)
ilhamdilla (praise be to God)
ma' issalaame (God keep you safe)
they put their trust in God
waiting patiently for God to act
enduring centuries of occupation
prepared for centuries more
inshallah-as God wills
these shepherds of the south Hebron hills
the resistance café
a simple menu
arabic coffee mint tea soft drinks assorted sweets argila
the entré is free ismael’s story
tall thin dark wavy hair
once strikingly handsome
now scarred by the occupation
head contorting in parkinson like spasms
dark penetrating eyes
look inward to what has been and cannot be undone
a degree in political science
advisor to arafat at oslo
leader in the first intifada
five years in prison
endless beatings
shattered bones
internal injuries
brain trauma
three months in solitary
shackled four days a week
in a 1 ½ by 2 meter cell
without food or water
broken in body not in mind
despite surveillance, harassment, threats
still resolute
each day ismael enters the old city
opens the resistance café
counsels trauma victims
puts meaning to his pain
the tortured expression is etched in stone
his eyes betray the finality of his personal tragedy
despite the crushing occupation
they often sparkle with pride, contentment
that spreads a glow across his face
noor five children
a private sanctuary
allah rahim
(God is merciful)
Christmas Pilgrimage
entering the holy land again for the first time
each pilgrimage unique, pristine
emotionally unpredictable
spiritually invigorating
exploring the limits of experience
plumbing the depth of the soul
leaving the mundane world behind
bound to the mind of Jesus
"Peace on earth, good will to all"
