They say that singing poems is a dangerous art,
that they are sung to incite feelings in those who hear them.
They say that but they do not know
when I sang of love for my country,
with poems, words, letters and thoughts,
the guns became like jasmine.
They say that but they know
that there is music in my poems,
they are the ones
who transformed the songs
by bombing
to a voice of lamentation.
Palestine, you are the meaning,
you are the pulse of letters
and the melody of pride,
the poem becomes longer
if it is spoken about you,
the conversation goes on
until there is no end.
You are the inspiration
and all the words come from you.
No matter what they say,
you are the love of my life,
the one who remains my melody
and my enduring poetry.

Dareen Tatour is a Palestinian poet who was imprisoned in 2016 for a poem she had written. She was later released but lives inside the current borders of Israel in difficult conditions with many death threats. This poem is from her latest work in English: A balcony over a city engulfed by war (Drunk Muse Press, Feb 2024)

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