by Farah Chamma
We jumped from one city to the next,
like two balloons in the rain,
from Beirut to Haifa on a train
just like in the 1930s,
we ate some watermelon by the Dead Sea
and kissed all the way back to Mesopotamia ///
right in front of the BBC
Broadcasting House in London
we moved so fast from one civilization to the next
holding hands and kissing with our tongues
shhhh
stop calling us refugees
for at least 30 minutes
we are seeking refuge
but then again, who isn’t?
Right Wing politics
has always bored us to tears
and whenever we board a train or a plane
we remember the borders
that seem like they can also stop the rain
from getting a fucking visa
ahh to jump freely in front of the BBC!
even when bureaucracy is a thick thick sea
that even Moses cannot part
Asylum Alaikum
we are not crazy but
your Cuckoo’s Nest will keep shoving pills down our throat
telling us that we are we keep spitting them out,
like Jack Nicholson.
Keep breaking us with your borders
and your cold, dirty politics
we will make sure to keep our bodies warm
with love and kindness
the Guardian published
“At least 3 2 0 , 0 0 0
homeless people in Britain”
Oh where do we start?
don’t worry, habeebi
we made it to London now
and we are happy to be here
and we will jump
on every civilization
on every empire
on every painful memory
in front of the
B B C Broadcasting House
And we will kiss until
they give us a fucking visa
. . .
by Farah Chamma
We jumped from one city to the next,
like two balloons in the rain,
from Beirut to Haifa on a train
just like in the 1930s,
we ate some watermelon by the Dead Sea
and kissed all the way back to Mesopotamia ///
right in front of the BBC
Broadcasting House in London
we moved so fast from one civilization to the next
holding hands and kissing with our tongues
shhhh
stop calling us refugees
for at least 30 minutes
we are seeking refuge
but then again, who isn’t?
Right Wing politics
has always bored us to tears
and whenever we board a train or a plane
we remember the borders
that seem like they can also stop the rain
from getting a fucking visa
ahh to jump freely in front of the BBC!
even when bureaucracy is a thick thick sea
that even Moses cannot part
Asylum Alaikum
we are not crazy but
your Cuckoo’s Nest will keep shoving pills down our throat
telling us that we are we keep spitting them out,
like Jack Nicholson.
Keep breaking us with your borders
and your cold, dirty politics
we will make sure to keep our bodies warm
with love and kindness
the Guardian published
“At least 3 2 0 , 0 0 0
homeless people in Britain”
Oh where do we start?
don’t worry, habeebi
we made it to London now
and we are happy to be here
and we will jump
on every civilization
on every empire
on every painful memory
in front of the
B B C Broadcasting House
And we will kiss until
they give us a fucking visa
. . .