You are 26 years old
You deserve peace and love
Laughter, playing football with friends
Green grass, sunshine
An afternoon swim
Sleeping in the shade of a tree
not a care in the world

You deserve enjoying the life you created
Welcoming a wife into your home
So lovingly built
Beginning a family

You are 26 years old
Living through your 7th war
Watching your entire world
Turn to rubble before your eyes
Buildings, homes made in to graveyards
On every street

You gather wood
You distribute bread
You teach English
You bury your brother
You pray

You are 26 years old
And never know if you will live to see the next day
Your wildest hope, just to survive
To make it out alive

And whether you do or not, dear friend
The duty of the rest of us remains the same:
To shout
FREE PALESTINE
with everything we have

You are 26 years old
Your every breath is an act of resistance

Omar Al-Balawi
18 September 1998 – 9 October 2024