Three Inspirational Poems by Afghan Women

 

Afghan woman smiling
THE GOOD DAYS
Sh. Rasouli

I am a girl with a world of dreams,
Brimful with the pure feeling of life.
I am a girl with a backpack of eaten words
And seconds overwhelmed with chaos.
I am a girl. Let me think about the good days.
I am a girl. Let me breathe.

Afghan women traditional afghan scarf

MY SILENCE
N. Wali

I have remained under your fists and kicks for years
But I will never break.
I am a woman, harder than diamonds
And no burqas will hide me.
Why should I cover for your honor?
“What does a woman have to say?” you told me.
You told me to be silent,
But you didn’t know:
Even my silence is a thunderous roar.

wedding-dresses-Afghanistan

WHITE DRESS
Shabana Stanekzai

The white dress was an imposed gift.
Tight and painful
Neither does it attach to me body
Nor does it leave my embrace.
The dress- to be replaced with a coffin-
Is an unwanted gift from my father.
Alas, customs don’t tolerate my naked wounds.
I will take the pain
For one day
It might be torn off my body.

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Click to read My Silence, The Good Days, and White Dress in Persian.

Feature image by Zahra W.