I just thought I'm at home, far away from my own;
At home with too many brothers 'n sisters,
Of about two dozen countries from around the world;
At home with known, unknown and half-known people,
At home in Bandung at West Java of Indonesia.
We came here in a rainy afternoon of May 2011
and gathered in Savoy Homann;
We gathered here to talk about
The family The women and The children
With the list of related problems and issues
Cropping up every day and threatening our lives.
We cared to talk about the orphans, single mothers,
Violence in the family, abuse of rights, sex and drug;
We talked about how women, fifty percent of the humanity,
Can be raised on their knees and are empowered.
We talked in grief, argued but laughed at the end;
Someone asked which family has the leader as Muhammad?
Which family has the book like the holy Quraan? Then
Should the picture of Muslim families be so miserable?
Another sounded more confident: Our families should be
A place of love, security and harmony in our lives;
We shouldn't need orphanage and old homes anymore,
Lest we solve such issues within our family gardens!
To end as we parted, brothers 'n sisters from planet earth,
We knew we shall meet again 'n again in our spirits 'n deeds.
How wonderful it was to see an international conference
Turn into a matter of bondage, relatives and family affair,
: A larger family of the Muslims in the Islamic World.
