Thursday 6 May 2010

Orange

Orange
has many shades
It is the colour of change
Orange is what you feel
in a flirty skirt
and golden gladiator sandals.
Orange makes love
with her spirit
Has her own chakra
Turns cartwheels
on a national flag.
Can be eaten
by the dozen
in Haiti, on a hot day,
as you climb miles
of dusty track
to visit a dying child.
Orange can save your life.
Sometimes, very rarely
Orange
can be misunderstood
misused, even abused.

Whose eyes are these
that cannot see
the aura of good?
Not the ones concealed
beneath
the complementary black hood.

The list of requirements
is simple.
You have to hate.
Declare yourself an Agent
of the Enemy of the State.

Then wait
for the bombs to detonate,
while the detainees contemplate
Who hates who
more?

Just so you know
I am thinking of you
Brothers of the Bay
in your isolated cages
in your suffocating spaces

I am trying to free you
I am trying to believe in you

Orange.





Poem, copyright 2010, Shaista

11 comments:

Maggie May said...

This is a moving post Shaista. I am thinking of you, so hopeful for peace inside your body.

mermaid gallery said...

orange is transforming...so bright and sunny...so unlike a prison cell...I too wish Obama would close the prison. It is inhumane.

Sam Liu said...

This is such an effective piece of writing, Shaista and something I feel strongly about. Who are the real criminals here? So beautifully expressed, your poem is simply magical.

Willy. said...

Freedom is peace !
peace is not freedom!
the rainbow creator.
grtn Willy.

Ruth said...

Every day for them must be orange hell. Terrific poem, Shaista.

I hope you are feeling well.

xxoo

Tess Kincaid said...

Excellent piece, Shaista.

Wine and Words said...

This is what I love about poetry, the expansion of words and their meaning. Orange will never be quite the same again! I loved this piece.

Came over from Flux. I did snoop around, but then again...you left the window open :)

Lydia said...

Orange, of the reddish-orange tone, is my favorite color. You gave orange a voice in this poem and I liked it. Very much.

iechydda said...

"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do."

Unknown said...

You colour orange so well:) Lovely post.

lupie said...

A simple "orange", yet has so many meanings to it ...

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