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Hatem M. Titi

Hatem M. Titi is a Palestinian poet and PhD student at Tel-Aviv University, in the school of chemistry. He lives in Tel Aviv-Yaffa (Yaffo) and is originally from Akka (Akko/Acre), which lies inside the 1948 borders of Palestine, but was seized by Israel during the war. He writes mostly in Arabic but lately has translated his poems into English and has also written original poems in English. His poems mainly describe Palestinian daily life, the Nakba (Arabic for “Catastrophe”), the sea and ocean, world hunger, humanity, and freedom.



Our voyage

The thundering waves accused me,
The pounding sea accosted my soul.
When I gazed out over the tumultuous sea
As thundering hooves ripped at my sails,
While squalls imperiled the sails and rudder
Of my Clipper riding the dark storm,
My heart skipped a beat and longed to turn back
From the clamor storm.

If we lack courage, still this is the way
To continue our voyage:
The sailors will never have
Another grave like the sea
I will turn back and become the log book
Of the sailors who died between
The mysterious waves
Of the deep cold ocean
Whose tears of sadness and pain
Control our lives.

The thundering waves call out to me,
The pounding sea accosts my soul,
So that my heart longs to stop abruptly
And yet the adventure has just begun!
Sailors quail when the wind blows
Its tragic, mystic spells
But who would not die a hero
When storms clamor?



Dreams and Mothers

It is morning
In the middle of the night
The wind is whispering
You're near death
You shout nonsense
It is morning
There is no sun
But still I see the light

Shaking, talking to yourself
Nonsense
What’s going on?
You scream

Can't move a muscle
You can’t hear your own voice
Your mouth bleeds
Tears fall like waterfalls
From your gloomy eyes
You see all your beloved
Friends and family
It becomes cold
Dark and scary
Till you feel warmth
On your cheek
Where is this heat coming from?

Shocked, you asked yourself
It is getting warmer
The coldness vanishes

Like water in the desert
The fear disappears
Like light erasing darkness
Your morning
Becomes sunny

You smile, and you hear a voice
Wake up darling
Then you feel a kiss
Tickle your body
Especially, your heart
Your tears become liquid crystals
Of joy and happiness
Wake up your mother says

You open your eyes
And look deeply into her eyes
And say,
I love you mom.

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