Abir Zaki
This new poem by Saudi poet Abir Zaki is an example of her latest work. She published her first book of poetry, 'Poetic Aroma', in 2004, and her second collection, 'Wings of Freedom', is to appear in 2009, in Jordan. Her poetry focuses on human emotions, and a range of social and political problems. Born in Istanbul on January 15th 1965, she had been educated in many parts of the world, including Paris, Beirut, Kabul, Istanbul, Makkah, Jeddah and the USA. She has a Master of Science in Education, in learning difficulties from New York in the USA, and a bachelor degree in English Language and Literature from Jeddah University in Saudi Arabia. In addition to her poetry, she has worked in several academic jobs, having taught in private schools, in colleges, volunteering in tutoring, and also teaching Saudi female employees in an oil company in Saudi Arabia. She also knows many languages-- in addition to Arabic, she has an excellent oral and written grasp of English, French and Turkish. She currently lives in Amman.
Tears become immemorial
on the wings of a phoenix
of a love story
a spark
salt afire
burning different colors
never ending ablaze
in the fields that were sowed
with the seeds of yearning
a girl is harvesting
for her beloved sailor
who died long ago…
weeds on his tomb
singing ballads under the fading moonlight
all ears
in the peak of the night
a knife fell down
in the silence of an outcry
a basil leaf 's dead
a pale geranium falling down
nobody heard its appeal
while a sparrow's broken wings
dropped into ashes
piercing and passing the heart
setting up the time
crowning with fire
like birds perching in time flow
the shell cracked
and the wound bled
eyes pulled the cloak of sadness
of the yearning seeds
that was harvested by the girl
on her backbone
the history of asylum
bore fire in her womb
dropping it into the sea
rubbing her hands with the flames of water
neither seen by the moonlight
nor felt sorry for herself
just being vowed
undoing the ropes of her heart
tossing away its remains
they closed her eyes
covered her face with
white feather
no body heard the moaning of the ashes
some reverie, some reality
life has lied….
15/7/2009
Abir Zaki