Three Poems by Maysara Salah El-Din
It’s My Chest
By Maysara Salah El-Din
Translated by Yasmin Hussein
I want to draw a dagger
on my chest.
a long dagger
sharp
and jagged
with a sly, pointed tip
and an ivory hilt,
the kind
that scowls
at a smiling baby.
Or I could draw
a lion.
a big one
with a disheveled mane
and spiteful red eyes
and fangs that are accustomed to betrayal
and taking on the world.
Or I could
draw
a lion
a lion holding a dagger
and I’ll carry them both
on my chest
And I could
draw a woman—
a woman’s woman—
with a kind heart
and a curvy body
and full red lips
who fears for me
because of the breeze
and fears for me
because of the lion
and frightens me
if need be.
And I’ll also draw
a small house
surrounded by a garden
and a white fence,
where a dark-skinned girl
with flowing hair
plays on a swing
and a younger boy
plays with a ball,
kicking it into the lamp at the door
shattering it
but nobody hits him.
I want to draw
on my chest
a woman
and a girl
and a boy
and a small house
and I’ll embrace them all every night
and sleep . . .
soundly
صدري وانا حُر فيه
شعر/ ميسرة صلاح الدين
عايز أرسم خنجر
على صدري
خنجر طويل
مسنون
مشرشر
ببوز مكَّار
ورفيع
ومقبض عاج
م النوع
الكِشَرى
اللى مبيضحكش
للرغيف
السخن
أو أرسم
أسد
أسد كبير
بشعر
منكوش
وعيون غِلَّاوية
وحمرا
وأنياب متمرسة
على غدر الدنيا
والوقفة فى وش الناس
وممكن أرسم
أسد
أسد شايل خنجر
وأنا شايلهم
هُمَّا الاتنين
شايلهم
على صدرى
وممكن كمان
أرسم ست
ست ست يعنى
بقلب حنين
وتفاصيل سخنة
وشفايف مزهرة
تخاف عليّا
من النسمة
وتخاف عليّا
من الأسد
وتخوِّفني
عند اللزوم
وارسم كمان
بيت صغير
حواليه جنينة
وسور أبيض
وبنت سمرا
مسيِّبة شعرها
بتلعب على مرجيحة
وولد أصغر منها
بيلعب بكورة
يشوطها ف لمبة المدخل
تتكسّر ميت حتة
بس ماحدش يضربه
عايز أرسم
على صدرى
ست
وبنت
وولد
وبيت صغير
واحضنهم كل ليلة
وانام
.
.
.
مبسوط
The True Friend
By Maysara Salah El-Din
Translated by Yasmin Hussein
If I find the ghoul
I’ll put him at the entrance to the building
where the security guard stands
and I’ll dress him in the blue uniform
and the cap with the golden ribbon
and maybe he could collect the money for maintenance
and keep the entrance clean
and tame the electricity bills
and the neighbors’ constant fancies
and the sanctity of the school-bus schedule
and the eternal secret behind the plumber arriving later
than the time he set himself.
If I find the phoenix
I’ll tether it to the garage, in place of the car
maybe it could bring me from one age to another
and from one feeling to another
and from the hell of questions without answers
to the hell of colorful answers
that flood with questions.
If I find the true friend
I wouldn’t know
what to do with him
the only things
I ever did in life
with much love and conviction
were loneliness and absence.
الخل الوفى
لو لقيت الغول
ح اوقفه
فى مدخل العمارة
مكان السكيوريتى
وألبسه بدله زرقا
وكاسكتة بشريط دهبى
يمكن يقدر يلم فلوس الصيانة
ويحافظ على نظافة المدخل
ويروض فواتير الكهرباء
ونزوات الجيران المستمرة
وقدسية ميعاد اتوبيس المدرسة
والسر الأزلى فى تأخير السباك
عن المواعيد اللى بيحددها بنفسه
لو لقيت العنقاء
ح اربطها فى الجراﭺ
مكان العربية
يمكن تنقلنى من عمر لعمر
ومن إحساس لإحساس
ومن جهنم اسئلة ملهاش اجابات
لجهنم أجابات بتفيض تساؤل
لو لقيت الخل الوفى
مش عارف
أعمل بيه إيه
بصراحة
اكتر حاجة
عملتها
فى حياتى
بمحبة واقتناع
هى الوحدة والغياب
The Closer I Get, the Further You Are
By Maysara Salah El-Din
Translated by Yasmin Hussein
I think of writing you a letter
starting in my kingdom of heaven
and ending in your earthly realm.
I think of recording my tears at night
on a tape I’ll send you.
I think of severing myself
And posting my constituent parts to you, in a package.
It’s nothing in particular
it could be your perfume
since fragrance
no longer shades me.
It could be your vision
its visit
armed with injury and loss.
It could be your tactical retreat
and confusing looks.
It’s nothing in particular
you are the beloved and the foe
and you are the heat of battle
and I am defeated either way
and waving the victory sign.
ة
أولها مملكتی فی السماء
وآخرها مملكتك فی الأرض
أسجل دموعی باللیل
علی شریط وابعتهالك
ی
وابعتهالك فی طرد
مفیش حاجة محددة
ی
اللی ریحته
مبقتش تظلل عليا
ییفك
اللی زیارته
مدججة بالجراح والخسایر
ییكی
ونظراتك المربكة
مفیش حاجه محددة
انتی الحبیبة والعدو
وانتیة
وانا فی الحالتین مهزوم
وبشاور بعلامة النصر
Maysara Salah El-Din is an Egyptian poet, playwright, and translator. He has published several poetry collections and lyrical plays, including Night Musk and Bir Masoud. His works have been recognized with local and regional awards, and he has participated in numerous cultural and literary events, including the Annual Literature Conference at Cleveland State University, the Dibba Al Hisn Festival for Duo Theatre in Sharjah, the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, and the Cairo International Book Fair. Some of his poems have been translated into English, Italian, and Spanish, including his collection Secret Numbers. Many of his plays have been performed on stage. As a translator, Maysara has rendered into Arabic several notable literary works, including Douglas Stuart’s Booker Prize-winning novel Shuggie Bain, Stefan Zweig’s letters, and Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar.
Dr. Yasmine Hussein is a Lecturer in English Literature at the Faculty of Arts, Alexandria University, specializing in poetry. She earned her PhD in English Literature from the University of Cambridge. Dr. Hussein teaches literature, drama, and poetry, with a particular interest in the works of John Milton and John Keats. She has published multiple research articles in leading academic journals on poetry and literary studies. In addition to her academic work, she has extensive experience in both written and simultaneous translation. She worked for many years in the Translation and Editorial Department at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, contributing to the translation, editing, and preparation of numerous publications. She has also provided interpretation services for major cultural and artistic events, including United Nations and UNESCO conferences, the El Gouna International Film Festival, and various governmental and private organizations in Egypt and the
Arab world.