SHUROUK HAMMOD

 

Evil Paradise

 

Give me a reason to be delighted,

This evil paradise Where I live

Makes my heart as black as fear.

My soul that is hanged on a wall

Nothingness paint approaches its halo

Refuses to break up with me

Oppression reached its peaks

Something is burning inside me

Like nostalgia papers.

Give me a reason to stay

Homelands choke with their fetuses

Throw them into exiles

frost rules us with a steel mace,

Troy slept to the sound of neighing

Love withered like flowers so fast

Does universe have enough mornings

To pull our darkness as a rug,

wiping up our nakedness with its hands' glitter.

Give me an answer to relieve

O love

Aim the arrow of your gods at me

I might resurrect again

Or just die of pureness.

 

Questions That May Suffocate

 

What does death want from the dawn's intention in my breath

When dawn is hope with crutches.

What does a poet want from his loneliness

other than leaving him alone

until he returns to it through another door.

What does the wind want from the grass of my language?

While it has enough whining sound.

What does salt want from the cheeks of my poems

but to fill in the grooves of their wounds with a wise pain.

What do memories want from me

while I am a well buried by time 'steps?

What does the night want from me

while I am shadow's sleepiness under the wandering tree?

What does despair want from me

While being its first name in the passport?

And you, oh reader of my stubborn anxiety,

what do your eyes want from me

What do you want?

 

Doubt

 

Doubt is not a wild flower

It does not grow due to chaos of nature

Doubt's flower cannot be killed by salt of tears;

It is used to sea tides.

Doubt's flower cannot be uprooted

either it grows or does not.

It has a memory of remorse,

the color of nights

That are abandoned by its guards,

And a smell that pulsates whenever it wants.

 

 

SHUROUK HAMMOD

 

 

SHUROUK HAMMOD "born in 1982 ", a Syrian poetess, literary translator, BA of arts graduate and a master degree graduate of written translation, Damascus University. She has three published poetry collections in Arabic language and two published poetry collection in English titled: (the night papers),(Blind time), in addition; excerpts of her poetry that have been published in many poetry anthologies in France, Serbia, Netherlands, Poland, Romaania, Nepal and India, A member of Palestinian writers and journalists union. An honorary member at NAJI Naaman international library of honorary culture. Award winner of many local and international poetry awards: Charles Baudelaire first prize for poetry creativity, 2018 Sylvia Plath medal for writing poetry 2017. Jack Kerouac poetry merit award 2016. Arthur Rimbaud merit diploma for writing poetry, 2015. Nazik al Malieka literary prize for writing poetry 2012. Alexandria public library prize for writing poetry 2012. Naji Namman international literary prize for writing poetry 2014. She has been appointed as ambassador of the word by the Spanish foundation Cesar Egido Serrano, 2016. Her poetry has been translated into 16 languages.