Perspective

I've been quiet for a while 

Trying to find the words

They come and go

As they please

Never long enough

To gather them 

And make sense 

Of it all

Despite the ocean

Or more between us

Your story weighs

Heavy on my heart

Yes

You've struggled

Doubts linger

For much longer

Than they should

But honestly 

I thought 

Your head was surer

And your heart

Far stronger 

Please

Don't let go

Just yet

Hold on for a while longer

There are far greater

Things to come

Of that 

I'm sure

Someday

We'll see things

From a whole new
 Perspective

How long?

Till your hand is in mine,

Till your breath becomes

The air next to me,

Till your eyes 

Glimpse only me.

Undo this confusion

Smooth out these rough edges,

Sharpen my ability

To discern

Your ways from my own.

May

There are times 

When, in my own strength

I try to wade through

The unknown

My head and my heart

Are at war

With the other

I know one thing

But I feel another

My head asks questions

That my heart cannot answer 

But then 

If I listen hard enough

And wait long enough

Slowly but surely 

I begin to see the two

Converging 

As they finally 

See the Light

So that my whole being

Does only what He wills

Forget

My heart aches

At the thought of losing you.

Soon to be replaced

By another.

Burning questions linger,

Their answers

I dare not find.

Will she love better than I?

How long till you forget?

For so long now

I have watched you grow.

Nothing much was said

That first day,

I did all the talking.

Slow but steady,

Your words began to flow

Sometimes they failed to stop.

Your world became mine

As you chose to trust.

I saw your strength

And your weakness

You could not hide.

And that is how

I grew to know,

To understand,

To love.

In the crisp air, the sky was like a dark piece of silk 

studded with tiny diamonds. The silence was dense, 

with only the quiet sound of the river and the

 twittering of some night birds to challenge it.

A Fort of Nine Towers

Qais Akbar Omar

Nongstoin

Next month I have the privilege of going back to Nongstoin once again. Every trip there is a lesson learnt. Lots of lessons learnt actually. The world is a big place. Nongstoin is a small town. God is a big God and Nongstoin and it's people matter to him. I wrote this on one of my last trips over there.  

Nongstoin, I will not miss your stares, my feelings of not belonging,

your dirty streets, your red teeth, my inability to communicate in your language, 

your lack of rubbish bins, your hostility towards your neighbours, 

your narrow thinking, your lack of democracy, 

your unwillingness to welcome the outsider, 

your power cuts and slow internet connection! 

But more than that Nongstoin, 

I will miss you because you are home to my amazing parents 
(and Soldier and Charlie)! 

I will miss your peaceful nights, the solace of the morning, 

your smiling faces, your strength in the midst of great hardship, 

the sound of the river in the quiet, your determination against all odds, 

your warmth, your singing, your courage, your children, 

especially the children of RightHope School - your hope for the future.