I am trying to learn
how to smile
again:

with a laugh and a
struggle, a thought
and a grin - I will learn
to smile

again
and again

Sixty-seven children have been slaughtered.
Sixty-seven dreams have been shattered.
Sixty-seven beautiful faces have now vanished.
Sixty-seven vibrant smiles have faded.
Sixty-seven beds are left empty.

Palestinian children, like all children, love to play.
Palestinian children are longing for peace.
The children of Gaza dream to be teachers, nurses, artists, engineers, and doctors.
Palestinian children want to breathe.
Palestinian children's lives matter!

(Palestinian children killed by Israel in Gaza in May, 2021)

Hussein Dekmak

It will require bit of humanity to:
Lose yourself in serving others,
Soothe their pain,
Plant smiles on their faces,
Brighten their day,
Lift their spirit,
And strive to restore them for a better future.

Your humanity, my friend
Is your eternal legacy, which is more precious than your wealth, Education, and a lifetime worth of accomplishments!


Hussein Dekmak

This pandemic
is taking a toll
On our lives
But,
On the bright side
It has also exposed
Many Faces
Wearing "Masks"...

That flesh’d vizard – does it decay,
So much alike the ******.
My mortal stature – emaciated –
Forthwith; it’s programmed.

Do those lines – like trenches deep –
Carve moats for tears to flow.
And do they flow – like rivers march
My countenance; fallowed.

To rejuvenate – vials and vials,
Ointments in plethora.
I rub and rub, till the vizard cracks
Lo! Restore my aura.

Pseudoscience, falsehoods galore –
A vice of fiscality.
Like a cyst, does it tremor,
Melting my vanity.

Visage – deep – a pick inside my soul.
Those flakes of ego crumb.
A mien so ******, yet so loved…
Can they not see how numb
                         I am.

Faces are our covers
They show the world what we want it to see and to believe

A replacement cover can make a tired old book look new

But hands tell a different story

On the ends of your arms are two gossiping wagging tongues

They always tell the truth!