There you are, sophisticated
And here I am, trading sophistication for
Something else.
You have become the Westernized Arab
While I became the Arabized American.
Now it seems never our twain shall meet
I live in a simple cottage by the sea
I walk along the silky sand with nothing on my feet
While the waves invite me.
I taste the salt of the sea
And its tender wind disarrays my hair,
Golden red like a soft summer sunset
Falling down behind the eastern shore.
I carry my heart with a hole in it
Upon a silver platter
Little seems to matter
While blood trickles
From the wound pierced in my side.
Yet there is no need to hide
Though I am an orphan
Of time and space
And my face
Is a mask worn to conceal
My torn mind.
Becoming bi-cultural
Is sometimes confusing
PAGE 2
Diffusing my mind
Like grains of sand
On the beach...
I do not beseech
You.
I only ask that you try
To hear my cry
And understand me
Though I am not enlightened....
Only the pale yellow moon
Fills my cottage with light
In the black of night
While chandeliers, like a thousand suns
Bring forth inspiration
And innovation to your mind.
I am made of flesh and bone
Skin and blood,
A bleeding heart...
Oh, I'm not so smart
But can't you see
All the love I have in me?
I have sold my kingdom
For my cottage by the sea
It belongs to me...
I shall not sell my soul
Yet am not able to
Fill the hole
In my heart with sawdust.
Reason for writing:
I am not an Arab but have lived in the Middle East for a number of
years. Though American, I love the Arab people with all my heart and am dedicated to them. There have been times when my dedication has been shredded to pieces. This poem therefore, comes from my heart and I think captures my love and frustrations.
Birth sign: Not entered
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