Lullaby for a Refugee

Once upon a time
You cradled me in your strong arms
And held me during my nightmares
Nursed me with your sweetest honey
And sang me the best lullabies

I still remember your face
A brown sun burnt skin under the white head wrap
Kind calm eyes without any bitterness

Thirty years ago
You handed me a story about the Holocaust
And told me to save myself from ruthless persecution
By escaping to New York from the Shan State

But you had nowhere to go
Only to survive the darkness
In the shadow of cruelty
You abandoned your farm, your family, and ended up in another country
Because of
Forced relocation
Forced labor
Child soldiers
Genocide
Rape as weapon of war
Extortion
You ended up being
An internally displaced person
Or exploited refugee in another place
I wonder where were your children, your babies, your parents, and your home

You were jammed into a gasoline truck
Or caught as the boat person
While the whole world turned the blind eyes
They handed you back to the executioners of Burma

Now that your days and your nights are in the darkness
I thought I ought to draw you a moon
Or capture the twinkling stars
And bring you back the sunshine

My friend, I wish I could at least sing you a little lullaby
To let you sleep and help you end your nightmare

Here is my lullaby for you

May be
You and I could be the waves on the shore
Pounding at the hard rocks
Slowly but steadily melting it away

May be
We could be the soft breeze and the constant wind
Blowing on the jagged boulders
Slowly turning them into pebbles on the beach

May be
We could be the white cloud with cool showers
Pelting on the harsh cliffs
Changing them to soft sand

May be
We are getting closer
Closer to our horizon
Inch by inch
Minute by minute
Second by second
One little breath at a time
Crossing the impossible one little dream at a time