issue 2
Koukash Review
2023
She was born in August.
A refugee to refugees.
Her birth, a blur
in a teaching hospital.
The students decided on an epidural.
A bit too late for one,
to be injected into your spine
and watched you fade away.
When you were gone,
the delivery doctor arrived.
They delivered her as you
faded between consciousness.
You never heard her screams
when they slapped her back .
Never got the opportunity to hold her covered in fluids
or sever the umbilical cord connecting her to you.
Nour Abuelreich
Nour is a Palestinian writer based in California. She writes about topics that explore immigration, refugees, and the Arab American identity and diaspora. Her poetry has been featured in Chapman’s Calliope literary magazine and nominated amongst the top ten at Ulysses Blog. Her nonfiction has been published in the medical humanities journal, The Linden Review.