And when it’s all over, my dear, dear reader…

Photo: The wall separating the Jewish settlement of Gilo from the adjacent Palestinian village of Beit Jala. On the Israeli side, the wall is painted with the view as it would be if there were no Palestinians and no Beit Jala. (Photo Simon Norfolk).
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And when it’s all over,
my dear, dear reader,
on which benches will we have to sit,
those of us who shouted “Death to the Arabs!”
and those who claimed they “didn’t know”?

— Nostalgia (2002), by Aharon Shabtai

The full text of Aharon Shabtai’s poem Nostalgia is on the website of Poety International, in Hebrew and English.

With acknowledgements to Lawrence of Cyberia for the link and the link to Simon Norfolk‘s photo.