‘Confined’ Poem
Arts & Culture, New in Ceasefire - Posted on Tuesday, February 14, 2012 10:51 - 0 Comments
By Ahmed Masoud
In her eyes, stillness
In her eyes, promises
In her eyes, hope remains.
Nothing but comfort
no battles of life, no pain of the past, no worries of the future
nothing but an oath of happiness
She speaks softly in my ears, whispering dreams
spreading her arms around me, wrapping me up with gentleness away from fear,
away from struggle.
Her smile is the joy of my day, soft, tender and ecstatic
a jubilation of victory, embroidery of my life.
In her eyes, pride
the sea colour invites me to sail far from wounds I have known
from the shouts of many, from checkpoints and wired fences,
from oppression and the silent scream of pain, from muted tears
from slaughtered souls.
In her eyes, I see myself
a human again
In her eyes, my love dwells
Ahmed Masoud is the author of the acclaimed novel Vanished - The Mysterious Disappearance of Mustafa Ouda. Ahmed is a writer and director who grew up in Palestine and moved to the UK in 2002. Last year he worked with Maxine Peake on Obliterated, a theatrical experiment and artistic protest. Ahmed's theatre credits include Application 39 (WDR Radio, Germany 2018) Camouflage (London 2017) The Shroud Maker (London 2015-2019), Walaa, Loyalty (London 2014, funded by Arts Council England), Go to Gaza, Drink the Sea (London and Edinburgh 2009) and Escape from Gaza (BBC Radio 4, 2011) Ahmed is the founder of Al Zaytouna Dance Theatre (2005) where he wrote and directed several productions in London, with subsequent European Tours. After finishing his PhD research, Ahmed published many journals and articles including a chapter in Britain and the Muslim World: A historical Perspective (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2011). An earlier version of Vanished won the Muslim Writers Awards (London 2011 supported by Penguin Books). For more information, please visit www.ahmedmasoud.co.uk.
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