My Work - Poetry

A Message Across the Desert

Listen to me when I sing
For poetry is my messenger to you.
Across the sand-dunes
It is my companion and solace,
In my gloom, loneliness and exile.
How often has it wiped away my solitude,
And I smile despite my misery.
Moans that tear up my chest
Are transformed in its hands into notes of a violin
And pain and despair
Turn into hope
That ride atop the waves of misfortune.
* * * * * *
Ah! Desire of my soul!
Does my image visit you
Across the burning deserts and the rugged mountains?
Does it sing to you my tuneful verse,
In the small hours of the day,
Conveying to you my love?
When darkness falls it comes full of longing,
And when day breaks it lingers still.
Beloved one, your faithful image never leaves me;
I find it always around me
Keeping me company in my solitude!
Despite the great distance separating us ...
As long as it sustains me
I can bear all this strife
That has consumed the years of my youth.
* * * * * *
Listen to me
For poetry is a sweet dream
And a refuge.
A drowning man may clutch at a straw
And a thirsty man may chase a mirage
But these tunes are like prayers
In the serenity of a holy niche.
Yesterday our nest collapsed
Under thunder and lightning
In the valley of misery
But tomorrow destiny shall weave a new nest
And the lovers will reunite.

Abu Dhabi, 1972