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
Sharing this stunning piece because it deserves to be read, heard and felt. So much love for her words. ❤
Warsan Shire is a Kenyan-born Somali poet, writer and educator based in London. Born in 1988, Warsan has read her work extensively all over Britain and internationally – including recent readings in South Africa, Italy, Germany, Canada, North America and Kenya
February 27, 2017 at 7:08 pm
Thank you for sharing this poem Maria. It is hard-hitting and thought provoking.
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February 28, 2017 at 7:46 am
Indeed, D. I was at lost when I came across this poem. This is reality.
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February 28, 2017 at 8:15 pm
It seems it has been written from experience Maria.
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March 1, 2017 at 7:19 am
And with that, it gave the poem an extraordinary feel.
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March 1, 2017 at 6:24 pm
It certainly hits the heart Maria.
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February 27, 2017 at 10:36 pm
Very beautiful poignant poem!
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February 28, 2017 at 7:47 am
Thank you, Pj. 😘
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February 27, 2017 at 10:49 pm
beautiful and sad!
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February 28, 2017 at 7:47 am
Indeed.. sigh.
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February 28, 2017 at 2:44 am
Oh my god, this poem just made my heart stop. Are there even words to describe this? I’ve never heard of Warsan Shire but I’m so glad you shared this masterpiece, because I am off to discover more of her work. Wow, Maria.
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February 28, 2017 at 7:49 am
I just recently discovered her when I was checking Button Poetry. Her words are piercing, it’s so heartbreakingly beautiful.
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March 1, 2017 at 4:31 am
Thank you for sharing.you’re right stunning and a good reminder of what immigrants live through, why the immigrate.
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March 1, 2017 at 7:44 am
You’re welcome Mandi. It deserves to be shared.
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March 1, 2017 at 1:42 pm
This is nothing short of astounding–WOWWWWWW…thanks for sharing, Maria ❤
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