Psalm 16

Psalm 16

Mahmoud Darwish Translated by: Denys Johnson-Davies/The Music of Human Flesh. I toy with time As an emir caresses a horse. I play with the days As children play with coloured marbles. Today I celebrate The passing of a day on the previous one And tomorrow I shall celebrate The passing of two days on yesterday. I drink the toast of yesterday In remembrance of the coming day And thus I carry on my life. When I fell from my mettlesome horse And broke my arm, My finger, wounded a thousand year ago, Give me pain. When I commemorated the passing of forty days* on the city of Acre's death, I burst out weeping for Granada. And when the hangman's noose encircled my neck, I felt such hatred for my enemies For having stolen my tie *'. . . Commemorated the passing of forty days': In the Arab world a ceremony is held forty days after someone's death. Zajel / An-Najah National University