This is what war does—

This is what war does—

to women—

makes them warriors—

cuts their breasts
stops the gushing
of their wombs—

changes their nails to
bayonets—

Their ocean
stops the waves

Their dance
invites the drum—

This is what war does
to war—

fails to butcher
peace—

This is what war does—

robs life
of lust—

plants explosives
on hope—

This is what war
does—

even before
it arrives—

shames the coward

in a million mirrors
hanged from

gore

Photo by Rahma Shere
Bänoo Zan is a poet, librettist, translator, teacher, editor and poetry curator, with more than 180 published poems and poetry-related pieces as well as three books. Song of Phoenix: Life and Works of Sylvia Plath, was reprinted in Iran in 2010. Songs of Exile, her first poetry collection, was released in 2016 in Canada by Guernica Editions. It was shortlisted for Gerald Lampert Memorial Award by the League of Canadian Poets in 2017. Letters to My Father, her second poetry book, was published in 2017 by Piquant Press in Canada. She is the founder of Shab-e She’r (Poetry Night), Toronto’s most diverse poetry reading and open mic series (inception: 2012). It is a brave space that bridges the gap between communities of poets from different ethnicities, nationalities, religions (or lack thereof), ages, genders, sexual orientations, disabilities, poetic styles, voices and visions.
Facebook and LinkedIn: Bänoo Zan
Twitter: @BanooZan & @ShabeSherTO    Instagram: @banoo.zan