[Illustration by Kahlil Gibran.]
by George El-Hage
I am coming from the distant past
From illusions we fabricated
And words we spoke in faith.
I am coming on a pair of legs
Paralyzed by deep, yellow sleep—
A long and yellow sleep;
It murders the voice of my conscience
And muzzles it,
But the dragon guards it
With his claws
And prevents my escape. Continue reading Journey of Illusion
[Illustration: “Refugees†by Palestinian artisit Ibrahim Hijazy, 1996.]
by George El-Hage
Today, the seventh day of the month of Death, I decided to end our relationship. I decided to pack my suitcase and leave. Everything in our spring-like room I left for you: the velvet drapes, old books, notebooks of memories and red roses. All the silk pillows, and the ivory chairs, and the chandelier of carnations, the big bed in the other corner of the room remain for you. I took with me one bleeding suitcase which is my heart. It was so filled with surprise and sorrow that I did not have room for one little pencil. I left empty-handed except for an armful of ashes. I held dejection to my breast, the harvest of a full year of love. I embraced it with anguish and washed its forehead with dew from my eyes. Continue reading The Book Of Death #28
By George Nicolas El-Hage
Poetry and art are twins. Both are the offspring of suffering and joy. Gibran translated Blake’s “Innocence and Experience” into a “Tear and a Smile.” Nevertheless, the unending drama of human existence unfolds itself in the pages of both men. Only the elected and gifted soul is capable of creativity, of reading the world differently, and of rebelling against evil clothed in a lamb’s garment. Art knows no boundaries. It transcends all national limits and is only satisfied with the universal. There, time and place lose their ability to imprison the artist in a closed cell. The inspired poet becomes a winged soul floating over life, embracing the infinite. It is in the midst of this vast expanse where the responsibility of the artist becomes eternal and his mission turns holy that we can speak of Kahlil Gibran and William Blake together. Continue reading Gibran Kahlil Gibran: A Timeless and Universal Vision
[Illustration: “In the Shade of the Arches,” Joseph Matar]
by George El-Hage
I vowed to rise in the eyes of the sun
To have its light wear me as morning
To build a castle in yesterdayÂ’s country
And become the Easter of your holidays.
I relate to you a myth about me
With love and my hands I build your home
I visit you in poems and thoughts
With the warmth of your eyes I light my tomorrows. Continue reading My People
by George El-Hage
I am Beirut
Look at me
DonÂ’t you remember?
I am Beirut
The Jewel of eternity
A boat of emeralds and rubies
A lighthouse built in marble
DonÂ’t you remember?
I am the bride of all cities
Mother of ships and alphabets
And home for those
Who are homeless
DonÂ’’t you remember?
Sole daughter of the East
Sun-colored daughter
Of the brown Levant.
Continue reading Beirut Speaks
[â€Cease Fire†by Samuel Bek]
Wars are never won until they can be relegated safely to the history books. The recent Israel/Hizballah flare up is no exception. The spin masters are at work with both the main proponents claiming victory. Since Israel for the time being maintains 30,000 soldiers in southern Lebanon, continues to dominate the sky and has not yet ceased its sea blockade of Lebanon, the winner should be obvious. With the deployment of UNIFIL and Lebanese troops to replace the IDF, the goal of stopping Hizballah military muscle would seem to be on target. But Israel’s latest reaction is the kind that the term “Pyrrhic victory†(closely following the Bush administration’s ill-conceived invasion of Iraq) seems destined to define. The Katusha rockets will no longer thud aimlessly into northern Israel, but then there were hardly any being shot before Israel invaded. Continue reading Can’t Win for Losing
[Illustration: “Tyre, from the Isthmus” by David Roberts]
The Lebanese port city of Tyre has seen the wrath of the IDF. Many villagers fleeing the unrelenting bombing in the south fled to Tyre as a safe haven, only to find that the leaflets dropped from the sky lied. There is no peace in Tyre. Perhaps the message dropped should have been purely biblical, Psalm 83 for example. Most Christians in American can recite a line or two from the 23rd Psalm, the idyll of the good shepherd and a message of hope. It is oft read from the pulpit. But when was the last time you read Psalm 83. Continue reading The Tirade against Tyre