A War Poem - Is This Victory? Poem by Robert Fernandes, Udyavar

(Mass burial of little innocents took place after the ceasefire between Israel & Lebanon in 2006 – Relevant to recent situation in the Middle East - January 2009)

At last, the war came to an end
It’s the day to bury the dead today
Survivors gathered to bury us
In tiny graves dug closer to one another

Gone are the days we played hide and seek
In the shadows of Olive trees
Gone are the days we shared our meals
Without minding our cast our creed
Magda Mariam Manaal Habeeb
Zainab Zachev Jafar Labeeb
Look how true is our friendship!
Even in death we’ve become one

“Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return…”
Drops of Holy Water we felt on our face
Some whispered “La Illaha Illallah”
Amidst, from far away
Mighty voices keep falling onto our ears
“We’ve won, we’ve won the war…”
A victory in our death?
We stop to think for a while “Is this victory? ”.