By Samah Sabawi
Inspired by Gaza’s Great March of Return, the poem ‘Song of the Besieged’ was written and performed by Samah Sabawi, with music by young Palestinian Australian composer Nahed ElRayes.
Song of the Besieged
The UN said Gaza was ‘unliveable’
but life beyond liveability in Gaza is inevitable
like the rainfal
… and the winter storms
ferocious it grows like dandelions
it powers through like inexorable love
like an irresistible kiss
like the birthing of new life
beyond the statistics of death
life beyond liveability in Gaza is inevitable
like the sun rise
predictable
like the movement of the tides
invincible
like flowers in the desert
unassailable
like a smile on the lips of the beloved
unequivocal
like a word that splits bullets in halves
indomitable
like a revolutionary march
unstoppable
like the earth’s rotation
formidable
like a fist in the face of occupation
undeniable like destiny…
like freedom from tyranny…
like justice for refugees…
so listen carefully
two million captive hearts are beating off rhythm
there is no harmony beyond liveability
only the inevitable
beware the inevitable
– Samah Sabawi is a Palestinian-Australian-Canadian writer, commentator, author, and playwright. She has written and produced the plays Cries from the Land (2003) and Three Wishes (2008), both successfully received in Canada. In 2014, Sabawi completed a sold-out season of the play Tales of a City by the Sea, which had an Arabic production by Al Rowwad Theatre in Palestine and an English production by La Mama Theatre in Melbourne, Australia. She contributed this poem to The Palestine Chronicle
