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Trees are evergreen
gentle winds
tickle their branches
The elders read newspapers
Children play
their mothers watch
There are rumors
another angel
committed suicide
last night
From Postcards from the Underworld (Seagull Books, 2023) by Sinan Antoon. Copyright © 2023 by Sinan Antoon. Used with the permission of the publisher
You were right
Your words are still wings of light
always carrying you to us
sometimes carrying us to you
Your name is a green tattoo
on Baghdad’s tired face
Your street the forehead
of a body beheaded every morning
Just another chapter
in the saga of blood and ink
you knew so well
I cannot lie to you
I’m quite pessimistic
we are still etching
the walls of this cave
thousands of years long
The body, or a voice impersonating it, said:
Go! As of now, you are all free.
The eyes flew far away, joining flocks of other eyes.
which had filled the sky, almost blocking the sunlight.
The lips parted company without a farewell;
One searched for a new face,
the other for a lip that would listen to its complaints.
The tired tongue sought a mute man's mouth to rest in.
The hands clapped and waved to each other as they fled
away.
The right leg appeared frightened and hesitant,
then rushed to catch up with the left leg.