Tuesday, November 09, 2004

Murdered Victim No. 48 by Palestinian poet Mahmud Darwish (my translation):
They found a lantern of flowers
in his chest, and a moon
While he was stretched out,
dead, over a rock
They found some pennies in
his pocket
they found a matchbox,
and a travel permit..
On his young hand
there was a tattoo...
*
His mother kissed him..
and she cried one year for him
And a year later, boxthorn
sprouted in his eyes
and darkness intensified
And when his brother grew
he went looking for a job
in the city markets
They imprisoned him..
He did not have a travel permit
He was carrying a box
of moldiness
and other boxes
*
Oh, children of my homeland
This is how the moon died!