A Ghost in Damascus

By 
Ghada Samman

A thousand years ago, I used to pace back and forth all night
on my balcony in the Square of the Damascus Star,
calling for a love that never comes.
Today, they destroyed the building, but the balcony still hangs
and my ghost still paces back and forth all night…
in search of a love that never comes!

Translated from the Arabic by Rim Zahra and Razzan Zahra

This poem appeared in Al Jadid, VOL. 9, no. 44 ( SUMMER 2003) 
The poem is from “Al-badiyya Lahzat Hub” (Eternity: A Moment of Love) Ghada Samman Publications, Beirut, 1999.

© Copyright 2012  AL JADID MAGAZINE

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