They say, “Oh poor girl you are
so beautiful you know
it’s a shame that you cover up
your beauty so.”
She just smiles and graciously
responds reassuringly,
“This beauty that I have is just
a simple part of me.
This body that I have, no
stranger has a right to see.
These long clothes and this
shawl I wear, ensure my modesty.
Faith is far less fickle than
fashion. Wouldn’t you agree?”
This hijab, this mark of
piety,
is an act of faith, a symbol,
for all the world to see.
A simple cloth, to preserve her
dignity.
So lift the veil from your heart
to see the heart of purity.
They tell her, “Girl don’t you
know this is the west and you
are free?
You don’t need to be oppressed,
ashamed of your femininity.”
She just shakes her head and she
speaks so assuredly,
“See the billboards and the
magazines that line the
check-out isles,
with their phony painted faces
and their air-brushed smiles?
Well their sheer clothes and low
cut gowns they are really not
for me.
You call it freedom, I call it
anarchy.”
This hijab, this mark of
piety,
is an act of faith, a symbol,
for all the world to see.
A simple cloth, to protect her
dignity.
So lift the veil from your heart
to see the heart of purity.
They say, “Sister of belief you
are so strong,
your scarf it is a flag of this
faith where you belong.”
She just drops here gaze then
she smiles with humility,
“I did not wear this shawl at
all less than one year ago.
I’ve been judged, misjudged and
mis-understood
by those who do not know that,
faith cannot be measured by the
garments that we sew.
Beauty, faith and women: objects
reduced to a fashion show.”
This hijab, this mark of
piety,
is an act of faith, a symbol,
for all the world to see.
A simple cloth, to protect her
dignity.
So lift the veil from your heart
to see the heart of purity
When we lift the veils from our
hearts and seek the heart of
purity?
