Another bomb.
Dust hanging in the air.
Names becoming prayers.

Then the brooms, shovels- bare hands.

Men sweeping destruction into piles.
Someone lifting fallen fruit back into a crate.
A chair turned upright.
Resilience clutched.

The killed carried away.
The wounded gathered close.
Hearts holding infliction from injustice.
The street returning to itself.

I watched in awe.

How does the heart continue after so much breaking?
How does morning still arrive inside the body?

Faith, courage, honor, belief in Palestine-
deeply sacred.
Tea poured. Floors washed. Shops re opened.
Children called home to tents before dark.

Life continuation. 

A kind of courage I do not know how to name.

To live fully while standing beside ruin.
To keep tending to ordinary things.
To sweep the ground that is home.



Comments

5 responses to “The Living”

  1. Your words Corey are beautiful, but oh so sad!
    Their resilience is amazing against the cruelty of power and greed.
    May God give them strength and hope. xx

  2. Courage and faith, hand in hand.
    Eid Al Adha Mubarak
    🕊🇵🇸🕊

  3. Annafromindiana

    Your words are perfect, Corey—- nothing to add but tears and prayers,.

  4. Cynthia Thompson

    Thank you for that beautiful insight . I am also praying. Blessings

  5. Marilyn Miller

    And the song that comes to my mind is “how can we mend a broken heart”. So much heart break and sadness and yet they continue on.

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