After it blossomed,
The flower said,
"Now, my beauty is beyond my control.
Now, even I am beyond my reach."



Ahmad Nadeem Qasimi, Selected Poems, The Pakistan Academy of Letters, Islamabad 1995

"QUEEN"

Black ink being spilled,
Scorching words uttered,
Soul shattered,
Emotions scattered,
She has been put down badly,
Her femininity being the only reason,

Like a warrior she fights,
For her rights,
Sprinkled upon the coal black darkness; were the twinkling stars,
Soul woven back with pearls,
Emotions with a golden thread,
Power walking like a QUEEN that she is,
Oh! She has never been so strong.

~ Ayesha Nadeem

A colourful candy bar,
Giving her warm fuzzies,

An angelic face,
experiencing a heaven sent,

A devilish face nearby with a malicious grin,
Ribboning lust in his heart,

Stepping towards a room full of toys,
Winning the child with petrol soaked perks,

**** of the door clicked,
Curtains being dropped,

The laughters altered to screams,
As a new leaf is turned,

Rapacious hold on the wrists,
Making the angel to vociferate,

Filthy hands and animalism,
Staining an innocent soul,

Carnal thirst being satisfied,
By victimising a child by libido,

Walls of the room tainted with a secret,
Childhood squirming in the corner,

Star shell wishes turning into coal,
Angels mourning,

Dolls gulping their tears,
Teddy bear covering his eyes with dismay,

A bruised piece of flesh and blood,
Stabbed from pain,

Butterfly peeking from a window,
Loses the colours of its wings,

The earth trembles terrifically,
As the sky detaches a star ! ⭐️

~ Ayesha Nadeem

The fingers began to search for a place,
To resist herself from falling,
Screaming and shaking with fear,
Baby eyes pleading for sympathy,
Stream of tears rolling down her cheeks,

A doll face strawberry swirled,
Blush turned into purple clots,
Dwindling flickers across the room,
She being knuckle sandwiched,
Bumping into a vase,
The floor littered with glass fragments ,
and the rose petals asking for life,

Life fading before her eyes,
A cold blooded hitting her like a wolf,
Puddles of crimson blood writing a story on the floor,
A fragile body panicking with fear,

Some silent moments spent,
His arms circled around her searing gift wrapped skin,
Her hair strands twirled in his fingers,
As he kissed her shoulder,

One more day spent,
A lifetime waiting ahead,
To play beauty and the beast !

~ Ayesha Nadeem

Ongoing instability
Continues in the Middle East.
All who long for peace can't wait
Until this brutal conflict has ceased.

We know it started long ago--
Disputes over territory.
We can also see that there
Are TWO sides to this sad story.

Israelis versus Palestinians:
We've watched back-and-forth retribution.
Why must it be so difficult
For there to be a two-state solution?

Why does it have to be so hard
For the world to pressure both sides to meet
To iron out a workable plan
So neither side must admit defeat?

We're saddened by the loss of lives
And feel a sense of deep frustration.
But there is a feeling of optimism
Expressed in the following quotation:

"From the seeds of hope, the tree
Of peace will grow…."° If THAT'S fulfilled,
The tree will shelter both sides AND
No more blood will have to be spilled.

I treasure such optimistic words
But feel as though I want to shout,
"Israelis and Palestinians,
Together work this **** thing out!"

-by Bob B (5-4-24)

°Quote by Nadeem Ahmed