Malaria Poem by Nassy Fesharaki

Malaria

Had never seen Afghan as I did
-behind bars
Hashem was a young chap, great guy
-became eyes to me and opened mine
I owe him…owe a lot
-as teacher and an eye opener

Refugee, escapee, insulted
-he was ex-student
-but in love with his roots
-and of course blinded
-by flag, nationalist…

He told me of the war and blood
-we were all brothers and sisters
-Pashto and Tajik and Uzbek and
-all others…
He taught me, our class the jail's yard
-I listened and he talked
-now and then with a sigh
-many times he mentioned:
-malaria…

And to me the word was strange
-malaria? I questioned
-malaria! He answered
-talked of it as if is part of a daily life
-everyone gets and must

There I was in nineteen ninety nine
-strong Taliban, heavy was civil war
-and I had long beard
-had to have a passport
-that was it
-and saw the malaria

There I faced malaria and people
-I felt it duty; rolled sleeves
-went to war to fight it in Takhkhar
-sought cause of malaria

Studied ways, tactics…
-get rid of their eggs, seeds
-and I learned of the fish…
-mosquitos lay eggs in humid
-edge of ponds, by the weeds

Needed land to gather the water
-met landlords who were rich
-got the land, ownership
-had him sign a release…

Became known to the lords to labours
-famously saw failure and success
-lifted were the sides of the table
-dined and wined with warlords
-encountered their workers
-firsthand saw relations
-came to me a young man
-swirled salty tears in his eyes
-lifted shirt from back
-saw canvas with painting
-a tree, many boughs divided
-thinner then branches
-all were wounds of whipping
-the landlord's cruelty
-man had asked
-for his rights of hard-work
-days and nights
-from rich who showed off
-gave me land…
-and this is a peak of an iceberg…