The Sounds of War

By: Ilisa Imeson (@aawhlisa)

The war had been going on for nearly a year now, and it didn’t show any signs of stopping. Amina and her mother had been trying their hardest to stay as far away from the war as possible. They moved from town to town, almost monthly. They had been living in a small town near the border, there hadn’t been much for them to worry about there besides the occasional air raid siren. Amina had been sitting at the kitchen table, looking out the window as the sun started to rest. The sky was painted in a kaleidoscope of colors while the sounds of animals and chatter throughout the town came to a still. Amina watched the sun set while she was lost in thought, she hadn’t taken the time to just sit down and think for a long time. She liked contemplating on her life and the things around her, to the point her parents always called her ‘’their little philosopher’’. She missed that. Her trance was broken by the sound of her mother opening the front door and taking her shoes off, Amina turned around and greeted her mother with a smile. Her mother came and sat down beside her. She didn’t say anything for the first few seconds

“ We’re going to have to move again…I heard they're planning another raid soon “ her mother spoke softly, with a hint of sorrow in her eyes. Amina knew her mother hated having to pack up and move all the time

“ Why here? They know it’s just a town full of random civilians. “ Amina inquired, though it felt like she knew the answer. At this point it didn’t feel like it was a war anymore, it felt like a game of ‘’how many civilians can we kill until people force us to stop’’. 

“ It’s complicated, Ami. “ her mother explained, they both knew it was for the better to not talk about it. They preferred to keep their hopes that the war would be over soon.

After a few moments of comfortable silence, her mother stood up and went to the other room. Amina didn’t say anything, she just sat there and watched the sky before she looked down at her journal in front of her on the table. She always journaled every day throughout the war, it helped her keep her mind somewhat together. She spent the next 20 minutes writing about what had happened the past few days, her pen moving quickly as her hand glided across the paper. She sat in comfortable silence, not paying attention to the window anymore. The last sentence she got in was ‘’if there is a god, why must he let us suffer so deeply in his name?’’

Her silence was brutally interrupted by the ear splitting sounds of gun fire, air raid sirens and terrified screaming, her worst fear had come true. She didn’t know what to do besides duck under the table, her head was spinning like a marry-go-round while her hands cuffed her ears, so tight it felt like she was scared they would fly away. 

The sound of bullets rang strong, the shell casings ricocheting in the dance of genocide. The rush of footsteps and broken hollers of commands was like a waterfall crashing around Amina’s ears. The ear splitting rumble of buildings right beside her own home came crashing down from air strikes, tumbling like a landslide down a mountain. All her other senses felt pushed to the side, the sound around her taking up every last thought in her mind. So much so that she almost didn’t feel her mother gripping onto her wrist, so hard she could feel her nails digging into her skin through her thick sweatshirt. Her mother quickly pulled her up to her feet before dragging her out of the house, as they started to rush down the back streets to dodge the rage of bullets. At that moment time seemed to freeze, the only thoughts that could register was that she needed to run. As they turned the corner, the only thing Amina heard was a loud bang that echoed in her ears. She shut her eyes tight at the noise, she couldn’t handle to see anymore of what she pictured was happening. She reached for her mother, only to find she couldn't feel her beside her anymore. She started to open her eyes, and slowly turn to where her mother was just standing. Her mind went quiet, her eyes widening as her body fell to the ground. There was a feeling in her body as if her blood had gone completely cold, her hands shaking like a tectonic plate was shifting in her body. Her hands touched the side of her mothers face, trying to check her pulse. She couldn’t have been hit, right? They wouldn’t hit a civilian?. Her mind was running laps as if it was preparing for the Olympics. She tried to speak, but nothing could come out. Her body was frozen while her mind was telling her to run and leave. Her train of thought was broken by her mother's hand running over her cheek, as Amina looked down at her, she saw her mother's eyelids fluttering. Everything came to a halt as she watched her mother let out her last breath before her body went completely limp. Amina grabbed her mother's body in her arms, rapping her limp body and a hug. She didn't cry, she just stared at the ground before she whispered “Why must they make us suffer?”