She has started to wet the bed. She is nine years old. Her eyes have become distant and she hasn’t smiled for three days. Her voice is hoarse from screaming throughout the night. She wakes up shaking. There is no water to wash her sheets and her room has begun to smell like urine: a sharp, sweet stench. The power has been out for three weeks, and the heat is unbearable. The windows in the kitchen have been blown out by the sound of the bombs that fell four days ago. The flies are relentless throughout the day. Your little one, he is four, will not leave your side. His clothes are filthy, but the water must be conserved. The car lays beneath the rumble. No way to make money now or even escape. Everything is five hundred times more expensive: gasoline, food, soap, and candles, but there is so little money that it doesn’t seem to matter.
Sometimes you pray that a bomb will fall on the house and end this. Then at least maybe she will be at peace.
If you like Iron and Wine, you have to buy their live show at Bonarroo from 05'. It will blow you away!
ReplyDeletehttp://stores.musictoday.com/store/product.asp?band_id=741&sfid=2&dept_id=7524&pf_id=FEDDIW105
you are such an amazing writer. your words bring your readers into the places you speak of so vividly. this post in particular helped to bring something so large scale into the homes of those that suffer. those that we are unaware of.
ReplyDeletecan i put you on my sidebar under "Writing Genuis"?
;)
i've been meaning to write you back about your wonder~full comment on my blog about you and your wife. it touched me deeply and gave me much hope. i am so glad you found me! your kind words sat with me for a long while and comforted my soul.
hug to you and your wife.
love,
boho
oops...sorry about the spelling mistake on my sidebar, Bz. i was extremely tired when i did it.
ReplyDeleteit's all fixed!!
cheers,
boho xo
Ok, u know that you write so well...?!? Thanks for the lovely posts
ReplyDeletebest
It is unbelievable what humans to do other humans.
ReplyDeleteThank you all for this great feedback on these “fiction” pieces. I want to do more, from different areas of the world. So stay tuned and thanks for reading.
ReplyDeletebz, sorry I've been sort of incognito - computer woes make me crazy.
ReplyDeleteThis unnamed child could be in Iraq, in Bosnia (remember that?), in Darfur, in Lebanon, in Israel, in Gaza. Remove the bombs, and she could be a victim of Katrina, ignored by her own government. The vile nature of hatred at depth, fueled by fear, creates this tragedy.
In Israel, the first anti-war rally had 100 people. The second, less than a week later, had 2500. The next one will have 10,000. The people of Israel are opposed to this war; what is it about people in power that makes them ignore the will of the people?
In the USA, the people are opposed to our war in Iraq. What is it about our administration that defies all common decency?
I'm exhausted.