I am so sick, dearest mom, fatigued.

Yesternight, the guy failed to show up,

as so hoped. I was told he'd be late –

he'd be busy welcoming saints and martyrs

and preparing a heavenly dome, fitting, therefore,

thereby splintering water over lapis lazuli,

and seating chairs and formal offices.

At night,

angels found him suspected

of passing rules of life;

he was banished to hell.

I am so sick, dearest mom,

'cause I do not know rules and

I've never committed myself.

My life is a chaos of the senses;

I get drunk when I am starved,

and laugh when I am really crying.

I am so sick, dearest mom,

as sick as a lonely man,

whose beard is scented,

and perfumed with lavander,

and who has decided to accompany

those who'd make him happy,

in his eternal abode.

Shereen Aladawy, a poet, is a professor at the Faculty of Mass Communication, October University for Modern Sciences and Arts. She authored ten poetry collections, including “Butterflies of Light,” “Daughters of Karkh,” and “Muzzle Pointed at Me. She is a member of the Poetry Committee at the Supreme Council of Culture. She is an opinion columnist for Al-Ahram newspaper. She is ranked among the top 100 poets in the Arab world by the UAE.

Bahaa-Eddin M. Mazid is an Egyptian professor of linguistics and translation. His research interests include linguistics, translation studies, text analysis – particularly literary and media texts – sociolinguistics, pragmatics, and methods of teaching English. He has several publications in both Arabic and English.