The refugee is not only a stranger to the inhabitants of the country that receives him; he is also alienated from himself, his house and home, his country, or what remains of it.
His new reality creates distance: the geography, the language he does not speak, the memories he represses because they are too painful, knowing that what he left behind no longer exists.
He went in search of safety but ended up a beggar.
The poem concludes with a veiled, somewhat cynical warning: don't venture too far. Your new place of residence is not safe either. No place in the world is safe anymore. You flee Gaza, but you may end up in the next Ukraine.
The project is part of the subtheme Writing After – Catastrophe, Memory, and the Archive of Loss.
Author
Marc Terreur
Marc Terreur is a Belgian (Flemish) writer, poet, and musician. He is a member of the Poets for the Climate. He published children’s stories like ‘Hare Halfway and the Book of Everything’, and ‘Flory Nightingale’ (2022). His first novel, ‘Verity Firefly: The Truth About Rock Bottom’, will be available in the Spring of 2026.
The poetry of Marc Terreur has been published in several Flemish and Dutch literary magazines. He also feels at home on stage. His work was performed live at the International Literature Festival of Utrecht (2024) and the Antwerp Literary Festival: ZuiderZinnen (2024 and 2025), as well as in numerous smaller venues.
