The God of War spots me
Lifeless in War’s Meanness²
Ah, those Eyes were once the
Home for Visions and Dreams³
Whisper the Names of Martyrs lost,
Into the Wind, no matter the Cost –
So their Stories may travel Far & Wide,
Across oceans vast, with wind as Guide⁴
How Serene Death is – Except for your
Weeping! And how Tranquil but for your
Hands Pounding my Breast for me to Return⁵
Can I convince Death of its Failure? Can Death
Believe I’m Walking with my Departed’s Feet?
Because my Steps are their Steps, and my Eyes
Are their Eyes, and this Poem their Listening⁶
And what of Context? When a Child talks
About Death, there is No Context – when
A Baby is Starved, there is No Context⁷
Every time I leave home: it’s Suicide,
And each Return: a Failed Attempt⁸
Every night & every day, I am
Re-Widowed – Re-Orphaned⁹
I’m still Breathing – but that
Is not enough to feel Alive¹⁰
¹ Basman Derawi, An Ode to Ouda’s Vocal Chords
² Ghassan Zaqtan tr. Fady Joudah, Three Intentions
³ Fadwa Tuqan tr. Nye, The Sibyl’s Prophesy
⁴ Huda Skaik, Echoes from Gaza
⁵ Mahmoud Darwish tr. L. Jayyusi & Reed, Intensive-Care Unit
⁶ Mourid Barghouti tr. Fady Joudah, A Small Eternity
⁷ Salaheldin Eleyan, A Child Should Never Die
⁸ Maya Abu Al-Hayyat tr. Fady Joudah, What If
⁹ Tawfiq Sayigh tr. Haydar & Reed, The Poem K
¹⁰ Ahmed Dremly, Nothing