Olive Branch

by: rose cervantes

Love is contagious.

And I think grief is too.

My love rises like bread

filling hungry stomachs in Gaza.

No food, no hospitals, no mosques, no peace

In occupied Palestine.

Empty houses blown to bits

Full smiles on children dancing in refugee camps.

Empty promises for a ceasefire or a red line

Full global solidarity for Palestine.

Branch extends – reach for each other.

None of us are free until all of us are free.

I can’t make you love poetry or politics

But when evil comes barreling through your door

And you know it will…

It won’t ask you

About your dreams/values/where you were born/who you love….

Don’t you see?

Love is the only thing that binds us.

I can’t make you grieve for the martyrs

Instead, I’ll stand here

& write love poems for the people of Palestine.

Love is contagious

It fills the soil with seeds knowing the olive trees will return.

With every beat of my heart Palestine will be free.