Afghan War Poems: Fearless

You can take my picture if you want.

Line me up with your zoom lens and come

in close. It won't matter. It won't change

my dignity as I stand here

before you, just as I stand to rise

from bed to floor, each morning, - put on

my shirts, pants, jacket, each morning,

worn as they are, combed my beard and

wrapped my turban around my head

each morning, reminding me that

only God is good, only God is

perfect. In my mind I can see all

of the miles I have crossed in my

lifetime. I have been hungry and found

food. I have been orphaned and found

family. I have been poor and found

work. I have no regrets. I'm still

standing today fearless before you

and tomorrow before whoever

God puts on my path, a witness

to this age, a sentinel

of courage, a keeper of the past.            

 

Artists Statement: A friend of mine living in Canada, Maureen Mayhew, has worked with Doctors Without Borders on a series of placements since the outbreak of the Afghan War. I am one of a number of poets who have gathered with her to look at photos of pictures she has taken of life in Afghanistan as she has visited the homes of people who have come to the medical clinics where she has served. These poems were inspired by the sessions of writing that emerged from contemplation of a series of poems one summer afternoon. The photos shown with these poems and the poems themselves are part of a larger work in progress being contemplated as part of a traveling exhibit related to the work of Doctors Without Borders. Maureen Mayhew holds copyright for these photos.