Abbas Beydoun

1945 / lebanon / Sur

A Wave

The wave, as it rolled, did not notice it
had lost its calling and that it was going back
to being a gasp. This happened when the sea
was nothing but depth. Those who played
on its surface never noticed the wave's absence.
The light water that was about to disappear
pulled us further in. Touched by a strange breeze,
we never stopped dreaming of sails.
When water recedes to being only a smell,
we move on and note here and there
an earthquake clearing its throat.
With the power of hearing alone
we found even older ch ron icles.
And when our tracks are lost,
higher levels of silence will disappear,
and stones that were about to catch their first scent of life.
When we direct our smiles at other depths,
they follow us without stopping,
and the child-volcano smiles above the surf.
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