All the Rest of Gaza

All the rest of human
Makes its way through,
Best intention piloted,
New horizons forever
Out of view, walled off---
But there are taller walls
Around you.

All the rest of human
Is listening, witnessing,
Braced for morning by
Watching torn places
Burn but belong still---
Belong to a people
Breathing through you.

All the rest of human
Collects its best case
Scenario by day and counts
You like beads in bed. We can
Try to find your time in our dark,
But we are lost in map tan---
World Clock doesn't know
Gaza, Ramallah, Jenin, like you.

All the rest of human
Might not wonder like me
Whether Gaza keeps World
Time like a stopwatch,
Whether New York or Tel Aviv
Would stop if Gaza stopped---
Is time choked, moated, as
Blocked as the path for you?

All the rest of human
Hopes it can't know, imagine,
What morning will show, if it
Will show, without light, dry,
Without water, in shadow,
Without shelter, of a city
Without its residents, children---
Far behind a wall, a border, we now
know means nothing, because of you.