What does an Immigrant call it if
They have No Home to go Back to?²
We arrive to Unfamiliar Houses and
Unaccustomed Climates, Strange Beds
And Unfriendly Pillows, Windows that
Open out – onto an Unexplained World³
I Lost my Home to those who Care Little
Beyond their Fantasies for what home means⁴
The Wounds in our Suitcases bear our Features⁵
Memory has the Fragrance of a Weeping Night
Flower arousing in the Exile’s blood a need to Sing⁶
All places of Banishment are our Home now – one
Place of Banishment hands us over to the Next⁷
My father shows me his Will: in it, I receive
A letter prophesying a New Exile for me⁸
Love has Two Rhythms: the rhythm
Of Exile and the rhythm of Origin⁹
I open the Map of the the world
Searching for a Village I Lost¹⁰
¹ Mureed Barghouthy tr. L. Jayyusi & Merwin, I Run Toward You
² George Abraham, Counter-Terrorism
³ Najwa Qa’war Farah tr. Lennox & Ezzy, The Forsaken Olive Trees
⁴ Shahd Safi, An Old Key
⁵ Zuhair Abu Shayib tr. M. Jayyusi & Reed, Probabilities
⁶ Mahmoud Darwish tr. Akash & Forché, Mural
⁷ Haydar Mahmoud tr. Jabsheh & Heath-Stubbs, The Palestinian Ayyub
⁸ ‘Izziddin al-Manasra tr. M. Jayyusi & Nye, The Inheritance
⁹ Khalid Abu Khalid tr. L. Jayyusi & Nye, Prayer to the Tremor
¹⁰ Anton Shammas tr. Ghazoul & Nye, Then How Will the Poem Come?