As a chaplain I was on the floor visiting patients. The first was a young lady. She was reluctant to talk to me. Was I there to convert her to Christianity?

But I had a soft voice and we were both poets. I read her the poems of Hafiz that talked of love and connection. She had been through a difficult surgery which was why she was in the hospital. A young man entered the room and her face lit up. She asked him to go get some lunch for himself so we could finish our conversation. After he left, she was still blushing. I said, “Is he your boyfriend?” She smiled and said, “Yes. But it is causing so many problems for me. My mother does not approve of him.”

Just then the local Imam came into the room. His face reddened. “Why are you with my patient? I am her Imam.” I stood up to introduce myself and put out my hand. He did not offer his hand back. I said, “I am a hospital chaplain, part of the staff.” He was still angry. “Are you here to convert my patient to Christianity?” The young lady spoke up. “He was reading me Muslim poems.” The Imam had a confused look on his face. He said to me, “You are reading her Muslim poems?” I was silent. I turned to the patient and said, “Let me come back a little later so you can have time with your Imam.” Her eyes flashed anger at the Imam, but she smiled at me before I left.

which of us 
belongs here 
only Allah knows 

Stephen W. Leslie

holds two M.S. degrees, one in Pastoral Counseling from Loyola College and one in Economic Education from Johns Hopkins University. He is a retired mental health counselor, and hospital and hospice chaplain. His prose and poems have been inspired by the lives of patients, clients, and co-workers in the challenges of providing health care.

Leslie’s writing has appeared in the US-based journals contemporary haibun online, Haibun Today, and Three Line Poetry; as well as in Paper Wasp in Australia and World Haiku Review in the UK. (See links below.) His poem “her far away look” was awarded a silver medal in Japan’s 16th annual International Kusamakura Haiku Poetry Competition (2011).

More on the Web: By, About, and Beyond

⚡ On Practicing: “On February 15, 1973, I made a commitment to meditate every day without fail, and I’ve kept that commitment for fifty-three years...” by Stephen W. Leslie in “Readers Write: Practicing” in The Sun Magazine (May 2026); also featured on The Sun’s Facebook page (15 May 2026).

⚡ Helen of Troy and Hannah by Leslie in contemporary haibun online 9.2 (July 2013)

⚡ Kent State by Leslie in Haibun Today 6:3 (September 2012)

⚡ Spring Planting and Soda Fountain by Leslie in contemporary haibun online 8.2 (July 2012)

⚡ Haiku by Leslie in Three Line Poetry: Issues 13 and 10 (printed 18 June 2012); 9 (printed 17 March 2012); 7 (printed 2 March 2012); and 4 (printed with Issue 3 in July 2011)

⚡ Haiku of Merit by Leslie in World Haiku Review (December 2011: Haiku page 3: Vanguard)

⚡ Elevator Music and Joe by Leslie in contemporary haibun online 7.2 (July 2011)