Mistake
When the Sun doesn’t shine in the morning / When the Moon hides herself in the sky / When people trample across grassy lawns / I feel the way grass feels—that / It is my mistake to be in this world / Where everything tries to break me.
The Book
I can’t forget / the lonely tree in a corner / of my University campus / I can’t forget the looks of my professor / during his lecture / and my thoughts of him, my eyes closed / He is the best / He is the best
Son of Sins
Stuck now / at 24, / I look back / at my path. / I look back.
Let the World Know
I am a poem. / My soul is crazy. / No matter what happens next, / no matter if no one reads the verse of my mad thoughts, / no matter if dust covers my poetry papers, / I am a poem.
Feathers of Freedom, Washed Away
I do not trust those who claim to support women’s rights in Afghanistan. How can I? Their work may bring forth one blossom, but that does not create spring. Let them stay in their offices and take their monthly salaries, but do not tell me they support women’s rights.
How can I trust, when I have witnessed the following.
International Women’s Day
Woman! / My mom, sister, friend! / Without you / The Earth would dry up / Gardens turn to deserts / Without you / My mom, sister, friend! / The house would smell empty / Humanity would end / Without you
But Not an Afghan Woman
I would love to be anything in this world / but not a woman / I could be a parrot / I could be a female sheep / I could be a deer or / a sparrow living in a tree / But not an Afghan woman
Your Maid
Your eyes were my mirror / I stared into you / I remember the moon was kind that night / The sky was happy / winking at us / Trees were listening
Playing With Questions
Sometimes I think people ask too many questions. A good rule is: never ask too many questions. I learned this after I once asked a very old woman: “How are your children?” I was embarrassed to learn she had never been married. After that, I try never to ask questions which are not related to me.
This leads me to tell you, dear reader, about a recent event. When I am done, tell me: who is smarter, men or women?