Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Warsam Shire poem, Home


Home  a poem
by Warsan Shire

no one leaves home unless
home is the mouth of a shark
you only run for the border
when you see the whole city running as well
your neighbors running faster than you
breath bloody in their throats
the boy you went to school with
who kissed you dizzy behind the old tin factory
is holding a gun bigger than his body
you only leave home
when home won’t let you stay.



no one leaves home unless home chases you
fire under feet
hot blood in your belly
it’s not something you ever thought of doing
until the blade burnt threats into
your neck
and even then you carried the anthem under
your breath
only tearing up your passport in an airport toilets
sobbing as each mouthful of paper
made it clear that you wouldn’t be going back.

you have to understand,
that no one puts their children in a boat
unless the water is safer than the land
no one burns their palms
under trains
beneath carriages
no one spends days and nights in the stomach of a truck
feeding on newspaper unless the miles travelled
means something more than journey.
no one crawls under fences
no one wants to be beaten
pitied

no one chooses refugee camps
or strip searches where your
body is left aching
or prison,
because prison is safer
than a city of fire
and one prison guard
in the night
is better than a truckload
of men who look like your father
no one could take it
no one could stomach it
no one skin would be tough enough

the
go home blacks
refugees
dirty immigrants
asylum seekers
sucking our country dry
niggers with their hands out
they smell strange
savage
messed up their country and now they want
to mess ours up
how do the words
the dirty looks
roll off your backs
maybe because the blow is softer
than a limb torn off

or the words are more tender
than fourteen men between
your legs
or the insults are easier
to swallow
than rubble
than bone
than your child body
in pieces.
i want to go home,
but home is the mouth of a shark
home is the barrel of the gun
and no one would leave home
unless home chased you to the shore
unless home told you
to quicken your legs
leave your clothes behind
crawl through the desert
wade through the oceans
drown
save
be hunger
beg
forget pride
your survival is more important

no one leaves home until home is a sweaty voice in your ear
saying-
leave,
run away from me now
i dont know what i’ve become
but i know that anywhere

is safer than here

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there is a great sadness
much has been written on this blog about (every place but also specifically about Africa;) the Congo, and Somalia, and 
the 
unutterable strange violence
committed against women
by 
men
their own men
their own home.
If you can bear it, read here:
for example,

congo

somalia



africa...Sudan...






It is to me a thing most curious, that within our species,
among our own families, 
power, strength, should be used to hurt..
Relational violence is mind-bending,
as this Power to Hurt and Control others is used to temporarily take the edge off of feelings of inferiority.
What a loss; 

how sad for us, that our culture has so many who will hurt those not only of their own species, but their very mates, their children.

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Poet:



Saturday, January 16, 2016

How to Stay Warm...Learn from Your Pet

Very nice collection




Lots more:

http://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2016/01/09/how-to-stay-warm-when-its-winter/


Pets stay warm


Animals keeping warm


Sunday, January 10, 2016

transformation of abused and neglected dogs: Butterscotch

OK, here is the good news: some people love their dogs.
Cry, with Love.
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2015/12/denali-metaphors-love-and-lifedogs.html


and, here is a proof that evil exists:

http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/2015/10/rescued-dogs-before-and-after.html


learn about these cold hearted people here:
http://marysbeagooddogblog.blogspot.com/search?q=animal+abuse

Now. Here is a rescue with a good ending.






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OK, here is a beautiful pic
( from The Calendar)
To cheer you...