Beauty persists or --
Life is hard and at times cruel. The innocence of childhood is long gone these days, especially in this part of the world. Maybe it's the challenge of colder temperatures inside the stone buildings than outside. I've talked about my space heater and Disney blankets, they are still my companions. The world seems filled with trash, especially here where the collection system is less than adequate and shops love to give you plastic bags for even the smallest purchase. And the plastic bottles. . .
This week I met a local professor who is semi-retired and spends his time translating. One of my early delights in Palestine was being introduced to the local poet Mahmoud Darwish. He is considered the poet of Palestine and captures the images of this land, the people and the occupation masterfully. He died relatively young in a Houston hospital from cardiac complications. Reportedly he smoked like a fiend. The museum in Ramallah that celebrates his life is surrounded by a spectacular outdoor space that begs for meditation. Darwish wrote in Arabic and this professor made the remark that Darwish's poems were still searching for their perfect translator. So much that he said is not captured in English.
The professor went on to explain that translating is a negotiation between the translator and the page and gave the example of "the city of Jaffa can be put in a xxx." The xxx is the word in Arabic that can mean suitcase or briefcase. Jaffa is an ancient port town on the Mediterranean. Thousands of locals were forced out with the Nakba in 1948. In fact my Fulbright colleague who shares my apartment here in Nablus was one of those, as the tender age of five. So Jaffa in a suitcase captures the transience of the smallish port town, in a briefcase has more to do with work.
I have been carrying my conversation with the professor with me since I met him a few days ago. Translation and meaning and making sense of this difficult time and place. Something about focus and perspective as well.
Another one of my favorite poets with Palestine roots is Naomi Shihab Nye. She finds the extraordinary in the most ordinary images. Born in the US, she had a father from Palestine. She spends most of her time in San Antonio, but because of her family roots, and time spent here, some of her poetry captures Palestinian themes. But living in San Antonio she also holds Native American and Latino/a images. One of my early favorites is Kindness.
And that brings me back to beauty and persistence. Beauty and the good persist because of our focus, or persistence in finding the good and beautiful. This is immensely necessary during these difficult and harsh times of division and nastiness. So find the beauty in between the minutes of your day. Negotiate with the words on the page. And I will leave you with the images of spring flowers in Palestine.
