Hibah Shabkhez Poems

Dark spinning avius, fly into the sun
Icarus, Icarus, hold! Here we come
Upon the soaring black wings of life
To snatch my son from the Wave
...

Heal me slowly, O death, heal me slowly
Leave me the day's dying light
Come for me gently in the night
Heal me slowly, O death, heal me slowly
...

Set aside dull labour, set aside cold pleasure
We ride for the mountains, for the evergreen treasure
Ah! The call of the Lord of the Snows has come
We ride North, awaken! We ride North!
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Here we lay etched upon the grass
The sun rained down in broken rays
Seared to smudges, fried-onion brass
The colour that will haunt our days
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(First published in The Ravi 2015)
I flee the jaws of Time's story
As they snip me apart twig by twig
Black Roses nesting
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Once upon that old green hill
I waited alone in the rain
Then, I cursed that bleak grey hill;
Now, I would buy it back with pain
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The cloud-enshrined sun
The waves leaching away the sand
A whole world undone
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See that little girl in white
With the golden locket?
She is what you could be
She is what you would be
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Wrapt in the otiose aumbry of pride
A glede hythe a quiff will gust aside
Her folly selcouth
Binds herfast to her wanweird
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"‘Civilisation shall stand in the dock
And answer for her ways!
My poesie binds her
The Guardian of my new age! '
...