By Fadi Abu Deeb

I am a boat

I am also the passenger on its deck

On the crests of a tranquil sea.

Near the edge of the rocky desert,

I observe the transformations of the sun,

And listen to the changes of the yellow heights.

My body and eyes wander around the earth,

Break through the vastness of water.

I desire the palm trees that move the air and edit the texts of memory.

I desire to go out into the vast ocean

Without departing from the stony valleys and the liquid dunes

Without betraying the trees of deserts and the abandoned fortresses.

When I’m lost, I get off myself,

I delve into the depths of the wintry valleys,

Hoping that the perfume of the early rain

Guides me to the first cave and the last innocence,

To read the map of the high seas,

And the paths of the green water,

From the lines of hands,

Imprinted on the walls of primitiveness