Goodbye General —
Greet your daughter from the girls of Kabul
Tell her about the colourful dance of kites, as if they were the earrings of the sky
Tell her about the taste of Afghan food, which tastes like sweet adventures
Tell her that all mirrors are aquariums
For fish that smile with children’s lips
Don’t tell the truth
Do not say that you shot dreams
Do not say that you have built new graves for human rights and children
Do not tell any facts about USA in Afghanistan
Let the diplomats wipe the blood from the roads with their tongues
Do not tell children anything about the fall of democracy from the plane
About pushing emotion into a hole full of rotten water
About the shouts you made to keep the children away
American children will be scared
And they will doubt your humanity
Just say: Our war is over; Let’s play a new game!
— Samay Hamed
A medical doctor by profession, Dr. Samay Hamed is a well-known poet, writer, melody composer and TV director from Afghanistan. He is the winner of nine national awards and two international awards: the International Free Press Award 2003 from the Committee to Protect Journalists New York and the Kurt Tocholsky prize 2010 from Swedish PEN. Hamed has 34 published books. He was once senior advisor to the president of Afghanistan for Innovation. He is a member of Danish PEN and a key founder of Afghanistan PEN.
Photo credit: Pixabay
