In your eyes, the stars

Pierce my heart,

Cutting through my hopes,

Tearing them apart.

The unmet desire to love, live

And laugh pains spirits—

It is the heat in my cheeks, the rock in my gut—

Some plainly pathological need

For living in sacrificial mode.

You tell lies to make me apologize.

Your illness wraps itself around my neck.

I haven’t washed my hair today.

I keep thinking: if not for codependency,

Would my need for attachment feel so profound?

Why is it that all we long for can never exist?

How does sadness manifest itself

In the eyes of the ones deeply hurt?

Your eyes are poetry and

Poetry happens when nothing else can in Gaza.

The pair of eyes look broken, yet prideful.

Their spark is art.

It speaks to me at dawn.

It tells me the monsters are listening today.

I try to comprehend

The pain people cause one another.

I fail. I always fail till failure becomes a trait.

Writer’s note: For many years, Gazans have experienced great hardship. Electricity blackouts, water cuts, poverty resulting from a shattered economy, travel restrictions, military assaults, and more. This has made Gaza a triggering environment for mental disorders. As a result, some unhealthy codependent relationships occur. This poem is an attempt to highlight the deep impact of the blockade on Gaza, down to the smallest details.