In the name of the evening bygone
Flies away the banned rain
Who shall I bare my chest to?
Who should I tell
That a bullet sleeps inside my back
And I have to die before the next evening
Only a day and a night remain
Don’t be merciless my love
Wipe away that sign of wine from your lips
Pour some fire in the eyes
And say that there is nothing called rebirth
What you gotta do has to be done now
Only a day and a night remain
Let the bullets pierce your back
And then you just go sleep
Don’t make any noise
Your sister is ill
She might wake up
Umma Habiba is a poet and theater activist from Dhaka, Bangladesh. Her debut book of poetry ‘Ghashe Ghashe Roktoful’ (Blood Flowers in the Grass) was published in 2022. A member of the theater group ‘Batighar’, Umma is also a development professional, and has worked with Rohingya refugees, children with special needs and the underprivileged indigenous people in the country’s hill tracts.
Quamrul Hassan is an MFA Candidate at the University of Arkansas’s Program in Creative Writing and Translation. His poems and translations have been published or forthcoming in Agni, The Malahat Review, The Los Angeles Review, Usawa Literary Review, Asahi Shimbun, The Heron’s Nest, Blithe Spirit, Failed Haiku, Prachya Review and Star Literature Review.