I forgot to post yesterday!

[brigdh]

Be Near Me Faiz Ahmed Faiz (translated by Agha Shahid Ali)

You who demolish me, you whom I love,
be near me. Remain near me when evening,
drunk on the blood of the skies,
becomes night, in its one hand
a perfumed balm, in the other
a sword sheathed in the diamond of stars.

Be near me when night laments or sings,
or when it begins to dance,
its steel-blue anklets ringing with grief.

Be here when longings, long submerged
in the heart's waters, resurface
and when everyone begins to look:
Where is the assassin? In whose sleeve
is hidden the redeeming knife?

And when wine, as it is poured, is the sobbing
of children whom nothing will console -
when nothing holds,
when nothing is:
at that dark hour when night mourns,
be near me, my destroyer, my lover,
be near me.

Comments

[rm.livejournal.com]

That's breathtaking.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Isn't it lovely? I've been saving this one to post for ages.

Also, because I'm playing around with airline ticket websites instead of writing this paper, I realized that I got the dates mixed up and I do not actually have to be in Cyprus until the 27th.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Ah, which doesn't quite say anything of Ohio, but knowing when one has to be across an ocean (or two, really) is very important.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

True. But since I was right and one cannot, actually, fly from Ohio to Cyprus (a rather astonishing number of websites won't fly to Cyprus at all), I'll be back in New York for a few days beforehand. Since I completely have no desire to fly into the city and get right back on an extremely long flight a few hours later, I'm spacing that out.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Oh excellent, then I can perhaps even bring yuo commestibles from New Orleans.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Oooo, awesome. I like food.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Well, will have to discuss your need for begneits/coffee/pralines/etc. then..

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Yum. Can you eat pralines? I assume there's no hope for beignets.

[rm.livejournal.com]

I can eat pralines. No hope for beignets, which is sad, as I lvoed them last I was there. There are, I hope you know, several places you can get them in NYC. I confess, I call them "antrax donuts" because of a unfortunate powdered-sugar related incident shortly after 9/11

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Well, at least there's still pralines.

I did not know! Where do you get them from?

And hahaha. That powdered sugar can be dangerous.

(I have to walk home now; I'll be back in a half hour or so.)

[rm.livejournal.com]

OKie.

Two places that I know about, but I think there are more.

one is F&B street food on 23rd btween 7th and 8th -- which is a casual loittle take out place really, best to get them and then smuggle them into the movie theatre across the street.

The other is in your neighborhood -- The bourgeoise Pig, which is about 8 different kinds of fabulous. It's on 7th between 1st and A.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Oh, I keep hearing good things about the Bourgeoisie Pig! And it has the most excellent name. I totally need to go there soon.

[rm.livejournal.com]

They also have chocolate and cheese fondues and insane drinks like white hot chocolate with bueberry syrup. Also wine as well.

I almost took you there last night, but is has about four tables and, as such, is generally a really crap plan on teh weekends.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Dude. That sounds like good hot chocolate. Someone was telling me that had half-priced wine on Mondays and Tuesdays, but I have also heard that it's almost always packed.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Yup, by the bottle only, so one has to be a bit ambitious. It's a go early, drink long and slow sort of thing. think they have or are going to have a second location int eh West Village that's supposed to be larger.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, cool.

Yeah, I've heard that, but I don't know where the new one is. I've seen the original a few times walking past, though.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Try the frittes and prosciutto with gruyere fondue.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I found their menu (http://www.thepigny.com/menus/TheBourgeoisPigMenu.pdf) online, and I think I want every single thing they have. Well, I'm not sure how I feel about a garlic and cinnamon fondue, but every single other thing than that. I would not be able to choose.

[rm.livejournal.com]

remember cinnamon in its natural state is bitter. It works.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, true. I'd like to try it anyway and see what it's like.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Cinnamon on steak with hot pepper is fantabulous.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Huh. I've never even heard of that. It does sounds good, though. I adore chocolate with cinnamon and hot pepper in it.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Ah. There's a restaurant in Brooklyn I must take you to.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Oh? Which one?

[rm.livejournal.com]

Oznot's Dish

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ah, cool. I haven't heard of that one.

[rm.livejournal.com]

It opened in Williamsburg when I lived there in like 1995, and it was a real casual, place with mismatched dishes. It's gotten fancier, although is still utterly bohemian, and it has food from all around the mediterranean -- there's steak with cinnamon and hot peppers over rice, whole roast bulbs of garlic, cous cous and tabouli, plates of roasted root vegetables -- it's like a union of Greek, Italian and North Afrcan foods. It's very smart. Also they make a hot chocolate that is chocolate, cinnamon and ground almonds.

Of course, I just wrote all of this, googled it and found it's closed! Waaaah. On the other hand, I know how to make that steak, and teh hot chocolate. and the garlic bulb.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Oh, too bad! That sounds really excellent. But really cool that you know how to make them.

[rm.livejournal.com]

And I must now go to bed, perhaps to dream of a clean kitchen. Of course, from what you told me about your roommate, other than a certain duck pot, you needn't dream.

I hope you're papers are going well, and if not, at least going.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you must be exhausted. I think I'm going to bed soon.

Eh, they're alright. I hope your article got finished!

[rm.livejournal.com]

Haven't even started it!

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Ha! Well, there's always tomorrow.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Who needs credit cards when one has procrastination?

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

Hahaha. Ah, yes. Procrastination. It is my favorite thing.

[rm.livejournal.com]

Mine too, since I'm clearly still awake.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

But can you procrastinate on sleep? Isn't sleep itself procrastination on, like, being conscious?

Although I guess you can procrastinate on sleep when you have to get up early the next morning.

[miep.livejournal.com]

oh yum.

[wordsofastory.livejournal.com]

I adore this poem.