I Wonder: an Israeli-Palestinian Collaborative Poem

Note: The following piece was written collaboratively with a Gazan friend. We wrote responsively–I wrote a line, then he wrote one, then I wrote the next line and then he did, alternating from beginning to end. 

I wonder    

I wonder what life looks like from the other side

I wonder who I would be if I lived on the other side

I wonder if I’d be able to survive living in a society where you can’t say what you think

I wonder if they think of me as a non-human

I wonder if there’s anything I can say to make the situation better for you

I wonder if God tries to bring us closer together, but we can’t see his signs

I wonder how people who are so good could end up with leaders who are so rotten

I wonder why people ignore our anger and despair

I wonder why it’s hard for everyone to see the suffering on both sides

I wonder if my tears are less worth than theirs

I wonder what would happen if we treated each death as a human, without seeing sides

I wonder why Nakba is being denied

I wonder how we can escape the cycle of violence

I wonder how we can start trusting one another

I wonder what we can do to make our future better

I wonder if there’s a future for my people

I wonder if our children will be able to wonder together in person

I wonder why you and me can speak this easily, without hesitation.

We wonder