Tradition at times in quaintness is wrought,
Simple and sweet and gay;
But by times tradition in darkness is brought
And disseminates dismay.
Keepers of cotes stand on and gawk,
Whilst mother doves over their nests
Transform and draw blood as if they were hawks,
Blood of birdlings they've warmed in their breasts.
The wings of little doves are clipped
With the blades of old rusty knives,
Yes, in this way their wee wings are nipped
For fear that they flee for their lives.
Crimes against humanity,crimes against nations,
Crimes against little girls; 'female circumcision'
Author notes
The image for the poetry challenge for which this poem was first writen was so stark I thought it demanded a serious reply."Female circumcision", or genital mutilation, is a practice that has crept out of the saddest corners of the third world and into the cities of the West by those seeking to flee their misery. It is a practice that deserves to be exposed and repudiated.
Written July 9th, 2006
In a list
A contest entry
- Image - 11 by NurseChilly.
400 points, ended July 14, 2006, 6 entries
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest - Rhyme - Sonnet, Villanelle, or Pantoum only. by ecrivain01.
450 points, ended July 31, 2008, 17 entries
Honorable mention
• next poem in this contest, remove from contest
What did you think
Comments
1 - 6 of 6
-
Yes ...
it's a disgusting practice, and should be stopped everywhere.
You have a typo in line 3. It's "time's", not "times".
All in all, this is a good job.
Thanks for entering.
-
You know, this is a very strong piece, but the message even stronger..I applaud you for writng about this..it has gone on far too long..keep talking truth!!
-
-
It's sad that such a practice exists so that anyone would have to write about it...
-
-
This is one of the most meaningful poems I've ever read. Incest and pedophilia could be considered worse crimes, nevertheless, FGM is a practice that sickens me. Not only does it destroy part of young women's bodies, but it snuffs out part of their being. You might recall one of my writes titled "Women," it describes my feelings towards females. Well, it's a blunt piece, but there's more to it then meets the eye. In my reply to comments by readers, I talk about the history of both sexes, about religion and the apparent female weakness. This is meaningful stuff. I'm off to see what the contest was all about.
-
I worked as a theatre nurse for 12yrs and I worked in gynae and childrens surgery as the hospital I worked in, was a specialised womens and childrens hospital..
and we were also attached to Manchester university and the medical school.. - sorry I'm rambling..
anyways.. because of the speciality.. I actually saw many women from sierra leone and senegal coming to us for treatment..
it was some of the worst mutilation I have ever seen..
and unfortunately it is still being practised today!!
so many thanks for telling us this story in your poem.. a strong and poignant piece..- making our judging a difficult task..
many thanks for entering and well done
-
ive read many stories about it- its an abhorrent practice..
thank you for addressing this issue.
m
Adding your comment:
1 - 6 of 6
