Poetry, Not Politics

I began this blog with a poem by Mahmoud Darwish, Palestine's national poet. I thought it only right, in keeping with my concern for balance and equality, to end my blog with a poem by the celebrated Israeli poet Rachel. (Plus, the choice of these two poets has the added value of being gender-balanced too.)

By now, I am back home, but my mind is still reeling with thoughts of Israel and Palestine. Rachel's poem reflects both the humble and passionate origins of the land, as well as its pervasive sadness. I've also included links to two interviews, one with a Palestinian poet and one with an Israeli. For me, where politics and policy fail, in poetry lies answers beyond reason or dogma. It is to the hidden truth of poetry that we must finally turn - not to agonizingly parsed peace treaties or quid pro quo agreements. Through conflict, we must learn to trust the guiding compass of our conscience and the universality of the human creed.

To My Country

I have not sung to you, my country,
not brought glory to your name
with the great deeds of a hero
or the spoils a battle yields.
But on the shores of the Jordan
my hands have planted a tree,
and my feet have made a pathway
through your fields.

Modest are the gifts I bring you.
I know this, mother.
Modest, I know, the offerings
of your daughter:
Only an outburst of song
on a day when the light flares up,
only a silent tear
for your poverty.

- Rachel

"For Palestinians, Identity Is Regained Through Poetry": http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/jan-june07/poetry_03-22.html

Israeli Poetry Reflects Story of a Nation: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/entertainment/jan-june07/poetry_03-21.html

(P.S. In case you didn't notice - all my blog entries until this one were titled with questions. By the end, I felt entitled to one answer, or at least a declarative statement...)