1.

Do not reconcile

even if they give you gold

I wonder

if I were to gouge out your eyes

and replace them with two gems

would you see?

These things are priceless.

Childhood memories

between you and your brother

when you - suddenly - felt like men.

Bashfulness suppresses your yearning

when you embrace him

the silence with a smile

while your mother blames you

as if you’re still two kids.

Eternal comfort between the two of you

such that two swords are your sword

two voices are your voice

such that if you were to die

there is a guardian to the house

and a father for the child.

Would my blood turn to water in your eyes?*

Would you forget my clothes covered in blood?

Would you wear - over my blood - clothes adorned

with silver and gold?

This is war!

It may wear heavy on the heart

but behind you will be the shame of all the Arabs

Do not reconcile.

Do not reconcile.

Do not try to find ways to hide.

2.

Do not reconcile over blood

even with blood.

Do not reconcile

even if they say a head for a head

Are all heads equal?

Is a stranger’s heart

equal to your brother’s?

Are his eyes your brother’s eyes?

Is a hand whose sword was your sword

equal to a hand whose sword caused you to mourn.

They will say

we came to you to stop the bloodshed

we came to you, o’ prince, to mediate.

They will say

‘Here we are cousins’

so tell them

they had no such consideration

for he who has perished.

Instill the sword into the forehead of the desert

until the nothingness tells you

that I was for you

a knight

a brother

a father

and a king.





“Do not reconcile.. Even if they say a head for a head.

Are all heads equal?"

- Graffiti in the West Bank, Palestine

3.

Do not reconcile

even if they bestow leadership upon you.

How can you step over the corpse of your father’s son?

How can you become king with such phony joy?

How can you look at the hands of those who are

shaking your hands, and not see blood on them?

If it was one arrow that stabbed me in the back

for you it will be one thousand

because blood has become a decoration and a badge.

Do not reconcile.

Do not reconcile

even if they bestow leadership upon you.

Indeed your throne is a sword

and your sword is a sham

unless it witnesses moments of honor.

4.

Do not reconcile

even if those who retreated during the fighting said,

'We don’t have the energy to wield our swords’

when the truth fills your heart

you will breathe fire

and the tongue of betrayal will be silent.

Do not reconcile

regardless of how much they talk about peace.

How can you look into the eyes of a woman you know you cannot protect?

How can you become her lover?

How can you wish for tomorrow for a sleeping newborn?

How can you dream about the future of a young boy

while he’s growing up in your hands - with a broken heart.

Do not reconcile

and don’t share food with those who have killed you.

Water your heart with blood…

and water the sacred lands…

and water your ancestors who lie there…

until their bones respond back to you!

5.

Do not reconcile

even if your tribe calls upon you

to be deceptive and show acceptance to those who came to you.

Your tribe will say

'You’re asking for vengeance

that is quite distant.

So take what you can right now.’

Let us be honest

in these few years

this is not your vengeance alone

its generations’ after generations’

and tomorrow

there is one who will be born

who will wear full armor

who will kindle the fire fully

who will bring about truth

from ruptures in the impossible.

Do not reconcile

even if it is said that reconciliation is deceit.

It is vengeance.

The flames fade in the heart…

as the seasons pass…

the hand of shame will leave a mark (with its five fingers)

on the humiliated foreheads.

6.

Do not reconcile

even if its written in the stars

and the astrologers break the news to you.

I would have forgiven if I died inadvertently.

I was not a conqueror.

I never snuck close to their trading post.

I never came close to the fruit of their grapevines.

I never came close to the fruit of their grapevines.

their verdant lands - I never came near them.

My killer never shouted 'Watch out!’ to me…

he was walking alongside me…

then he shook my hand..

then he walked ahead

into the bushes to hide.

Suddenly

a shiver punctured me between two ribs

my heart swelled

then burst

I struggled until I could prop myself on my forearm

and saw my vile cousin

rejoicing over my suffering with a cruel face.

I did not wield a dagger

or even an old weapon

nothing but a rage borne of hunger.

7.

Do not reconcile

until existence returns to its moving cycle

the stars to orbit

the birds to their song

the sands to their grain

and the martyr to his awaiting daughter.

Everything was destroyed in a fleeting moment:

youth, the joy of family, the sounds of horses, getting to know a guest,

the humming of the heart upon seeing sprouts in the garden,

the prayer for seasonal rain,

the elusion of the heart when it sees the bird of death flying over deathly duels.

Everything was destroyed upon a licentious whim

and the one who assassinated me was not a god

such that he could kill me with his will

he was not more noble than I

such that he could kill me with his knife

he was not more clever than me

such that he could kill me through deceit.

Do not reconcile

for reconciliation is nothing but a treaty

between two equals

(by the honor of their hearts)

otherwise it cannot be true

the one who assassinated me was just a thief

who stole my land right in front of my eyes

as the silence was sarcastically laughing!

8.

Do not reconcile

even if all the sheiks stand against your sword

along with the men with no integrity

and those whose turbans dangle over their eyes

and their Arabic swords have forgotten the years of glory.

Do not reconcile

for there should be nothing but what you want

you are the only knight of this time

and the rest are 'Musookh’.*

Do not reconcile.

Do not reconcile.

———————————————————————

* For blood to turn to water: An Arabic saying referring to the impossibility of blood transforming into water, and the bonds of blood, family, and brotherhood being lost.

** Musookh (sing. Maskh): Creatures that are partially human, and part monster. Originally a term to describe creatures such as Dracula and Frankenstein, Maskh is used as a derogatory term to describe people - rulers, "Uncle Toms,” etc. - who betray their own people and humanistic values in order to attain fame, fortune, notoriety, etc. Also translated as metamorphosis and transformation.