Thursday, July 15, 2004

From the poem Because I am a Stranger by Iraqi poet Badr Shakir As-Sayyab (my translation):
Because I am a stranger
Because beloved Iraq is
far, and I am here missing
it, her...I call out: Iraq
An echo of wailing explodes
in return
I feel as if I traversed the range
to a world of death that
does not respond to my call
And if I shake the bushes
only death falls:
as stones
only stones, and no fruits
Even the eyes are stones,
and even the moist air
is stone, laced with some blood
Stones is my call, and stone
is my mouth
and my feet are
a wind roaming the wilderness