The Art of Noticing
I want you to think with me, and notice.
Since as we all know, there is a beauty in just looking at life around us and noticing.
There is also always beauty in awareness,
Even if it’s gut-wrenching —
Or not our business, as some would like to believe.
Let’s go together on a ride of noticing some things:
Notice how everyone in Gaza is living in rot.
Everywhere they go, they smell the dead.
Notice how, as they walk on the road,
They see corpses and bodies just lying there,
a hand sticking out from under the cement —
A family member might be one of those left unburied on the sidelines, or under the rubble.
Notice the contamination of the air,
Created by the bombing of every building, house, and compound that existed there.
Notice the olive trees, brutally murdered with every attack,
Limiting the oxygen that’s produced for the world.
Notice how everyone is living on unpaved roads,
How pebbles injure the legs of children as they run from their collapsing homes.
Notice how they are living constantly under the sound of drones,
The zzzzznnnnn driving them insane by the second, but life goes on.
Notice what the destroyed houses held —
Memories, cherished items, decades of life, struggle, ambitions and happiness.
Notice the pollution created by the collapsed buildings,
The danger of walking around the haphazard debris.
Notice the sounds of bombardments at night and what they do to the children's’ minds.
(No one can survive such situations, so I don’t understand how anyone watching from the sidelines can judge)
I want you to watch the children under these conditions,
Becoming the future resistance that everyone will rush to point fingers at and condemn —
and in the future, I want you to know better than to join them.
Notice how the only survivors of their families keep going.
Notice how, despite the tears and pain,
They’re still strong and resilient — not giving in to the enemy’s conditions, and imprisonment.
Notice how they smile in the videos despite the atrocities.
Notice how despite this all, they give us strength
And keep the lot of us going.
Notice the world watching, taking no action to help them.
Notice the world leaders, denying their rights, and still asking questions.
Notice celebrities capable of donating money and spreading awareness,
Turning a blind eye and pretending this is not important.
Remember that everyone will be held accountable.
So stand for what is right, be responsible.
Thank you for reading, and don’t stop talking about Palestine.
