By Ahmed Masoud
Ceasefire
When they announce the ceasefire
I want to see your smile again,
I miss it.
When they announce it,
I will collapse.
The plasters on my wounds are worn out.
When the fighting stops
and the sound of tanks slows down,
we will hear the sound of our tears again.
Then, I will start to mourn my brother
my country, my people, my Jabalia Camp.
But for one moment, I will smile too and sigh.
Just before my grieving starts.
Ahmed Masoud is an award-winning Palestinian author living the UK. His first novels, Vanished: The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda and Come What May have received critical acclaim and have been translated into several languages. Ahmed is also a playwright and poet who has recently received praise by the UK’s leading theater critics in the Guardian.
