GIFF
      OF
      REALITY
     
     
      MARC
     
    
   
   
    
     
       
     
    
   
   
    
     
      My
      name
      is
      Hakeem
      Malik
      Husan
     
     
      I
      am
      eight
      and
      live
      in
      Afghanistan
     
     
      My
      religion
      is
      Islam
     
     
      And
      it
      will
      soon
      be
      the
      month
      of
      Ramadan
      .
     
    
   
   
    
     
      But
      this
      year
      will
      not
      be
      the
      same
     
     
      I
      ask
      my
      mother
      why
      but
      her
      faced
      is
      filled
      with
      too
      much
      pain
     
     
      I
      find
      my
      grandfather
      and
      ask
      him
      if
      the
      Americans
      will
      soon
      refrain
     
     
      But
      he
      stares
      into
      the
      distance
      knuckles
      protruding
      as
      his
      hand
      tightly
      clutches
      his
      cane
     
    
   
   
    
     
      So
      I
      run
      to
      find
      my
      brother
      to
      ask
      him
      why
      they’re
      bombing
      the
      forts
     
     
      He
      says
      it’s
      cause
      they
      think
      we
      are
      hiding
      the
      bad
      men
      and
      giving
      them
      support
     
     
      They
      want
      us
      to
      give
      them
      the
      bad
      man
      so
      they
      can
      take
      him
      to
      court
     
     
      He
      and
      all
      his
      cohorts
     
    
   
   
    
     
      My
      brother
      says
      it
      is
      hard
      to
      explain
     
     
      But
      that
      is
      the
      reason
      that
      American
      bombs
      fall
      on
      us
      like
      rain
     
     
      Because
      of
      those
      men
      who
      crashed
      the
      building
      flying
      the
      plane
     
     
      So
      now
      they
      are
      bombing
      us
      they
      think
      we
      are
      to
      blame
      __
     
    
   
   
    
     
      My
      brothers
      friends
      come
      and
      they
      run
      off
      to
      play
     
     
      He
      tells
      me
      to
      go
      home
      and
      that
      it
      is
      not
      safe
      to
      stray
     
     
      They
      run
      into
      a
      building
      and
      do
      not
      see
      the
      bombs
      falling
      or
      have
      time
      to
      get
      out
      of
      the
      way
     
     
      I
      did
      not
      have
      areason
      before
      but
      now.I
      too
      hate
      America
     
     
      and
      I
      hope
      I
      learn
      to
      fly
      a
      plane
      someday