I carry hope in one hand, horror in the other
The promise of tomorrow on my right side
The horrific reminder of my rape in the other
I will never forget what they did to my brother
How they bludgeoned my father,
Made my cousin eat her mother
I often wonder if the world will ever know
If I die today where does my sister’s hope go?
I thought my hand would be used to write wonderful poetry
But now I must carry this extension of me
This outward reminder of what happened to me
When they come back for me tomorrow, who will protect me?
When I can no longer walk, who will STAND for me?
Who will stand for my sisters and cousins in Panzi?
My veins now extend outside of my body
But I hope I won’t die in vain—a nobody
Hope is hard to carry when you only have one hand
If the present is a gift,
Who hates me enough to gift me this?
I may never know but I think you do
If I die tonight, will you let my story, my Congo die too?
Tags: congo, fistula, genocide, girls, panzi, rape, violence, war, women
Where I UPstand 
June 4, 2010 at 2:48 pm |
Omekongo,
Your work is stunning. Thank you for creating such beautiful poetry and sharing it with the world.
I had Doc. Splaine’s class with you at UMCP and I periodically glance at your blog ever since you sent me a link to it severl years ago. I currently teach at Westland Middle School (special education and English) where you created a pulication with students several years ago. I will be working at Key Middle School in Silver Spring next year and would love to share some of your work with the students with your permission. Is there a central location where I can access your work and videos of readings?
Thank you again for the inspriation.
Erin Clark