POEMS FOREVER
By Saadi Shirazi
I have heard that Jemshid, of happy disposition, inscribed on a tablet at the head of a fountain:
“Many, like ourselves, have breathed at this fountain, and departed, and closed their eyes upon it.
“They captured the world by courage, or violence, but carried away with them nothing to the grave.
“They departed each one, and of that which they had tilled nothing remained to them, save a good or an evil name.
“When thine enemy hath fallen into thy hands, grieve him not further; he hath already tasted enough of sorrow.
“Better hold in thy keeping a discomfited enemy alive, than to have on thy neck the stain of his blood.”
Translated from the Bustan by Samuel Robinson
By Anam Afzaal
Somewhere, someone smiles with shining eyes, a delight.
And takes your heart away.
Real bliss - like chocolate chip cookies!
Someone can make a wish;
With all their heart and soul.
Just to know all the buried secrets of the heart.
So, tell me!
About the person who took your breath
Away and then taught you how to breathe.
Tell me about the scar on your collarbone.
Tell me about the memory you are so desperate to forget.
Tell me about the darkness.
Tell me about the light.
Tell me what broke you when you were expecting happiness.
Tell me where do you find solace!!!
By Urwah Mushtaq
What do you do when every ounce of your existence wants to scream?
When the horrors keep crawling back to haunt your sleep, to pierce your heart and soul again and again
How does it feel to lose grip of your sane being?
Where do you run to when doors to your home are shut in your face
And you are standing there with keys in your hands, wondering if you ever really had one in the first place
What do you hold on to when the hands you once held feel like the only ones strangling you?
Who do you trust now?
When you have learned that nobody is who they claim to be
How do you love now?
When you know it’s never enough to save it all from falling apart
Tell me how many breaths more to take before you take the one that sets you free?