Open Letter from God

[Guest guest]

Dear Colleagues:

This poem cross posted from healthdev.org is able to summarize many a

issues in a thought provoking manner.

Best,

Jagdish Harsh

E-mail: <jharsh@...>

********************************

AN OPEN LETTER FROM GOD

I know you have been wondering

How a loving God

Would unleash

Such a horrible disease

Like HIV/AIDS

On His people.

I have sat quietly

For some time now

Observing

How you would respond

To such a sinister invader

As well as the response

Of my Special Forces

In the face of such an enemy

And I have felt the pain and suffering.

In the beginning

I was not that worried

I knew I had my Special Forces out there

Pope, Bishops, Priests, Rabbis, Imams

And others across the globe.

They are my Special Forces

To defend humanity

But as time went by

I was just angry

As HIV/AIDS invaded

Every country

Every neighborhood

And my Special Forces

Ran and hid

Not rising

To meet the invasion.

Behaving like collaborators

They were silent

In the face of the invasion

As their communities

Were invaded and occupied

In the face of Disease

Death

And Destruction

They were silent

As millions of my people

Perished

My Special Forces

Were nowhere to be found.

But I am a patient God

I gave them time

To come to their senses

I was to be disappointed

When they opened their mouths

They sounded

More like idiots

Rather than

My Special Forces

When many moved

Into education and prevention

They found ways

To do nothing

As millions of my people

Died

I watched in dismay

As they found excuse

After excuse

Why talking about HIV/AIDS

Was not on their agenda.

As many talked about condoms

My Special Forces avoided the topic

At first I thought

Maybe these condoms

Did not work at all

Only to find out that

My front line

Were condemning condoms

Because, they ‘might’

Encourage young people

To engage in intercourse

But that was not all

My Special Forces

Fought against

Teaching my people

About themselves

Their bodies

And how to prevent

This new disease

I could not understand

How one

Could enter my Kingdom

If one is ignorant of self

Mind and body

I know I have never

Encouraged ignorance

Only enlightenment

I wondered

Why my best and brightest

Were not raising hell

Excuse my language

When their flock

Was being decimated

By HIV/AIDS

Were they blind?

Did they not know

Their first obligation

Is to defend the lives

Of my people?

Did they not know

The biggest sin

Is to sit back

And not defend life?

Who told my Special Forces

They could discriminate?

All my people deserve

Love

Compassion

Care

Respect

And

Protection.

I have preached

The loudest

About loving thy neighbor

Of being a Good Samaritan

Which of these

Do my Special Forces

Not understand

Do they not understand

I gave my only son

For the imperfection

Of my people?

Mwaganu wa Kaggia

Date of poem: 13.11.2004

Email: Mwaganu@...