The archive
Havoc
Today peace reign
In the kingdom of my soul
Nervousness gone
And gone the gods of disturbance
Which strife in me
Days ago.
Now free
Feeling none
The mind settled
Out of its thirst
Still hungry
But in sober
I even wonder
What befell me
In these days of havoc
Peace marries me.
Umar Alkali (Riyala) · 1992
EDITOR’S NOTE
Originally published in Citizen on 16 November 1992, p. 37. This diplomatic transcription preserves the wording and lineation verified against the archived page.