"Regained Loyalty" is among a selection of Saadi's late poems that I have been translating over the past few years. As to be expected of a poet writing in his eighties, Saadi's poem here draws on memory, specifically of nearly forgotten events but that come as revelations. The train is a frequent motif in Saadi's poetry, and here he braids two journeys together, one of youthful love, and another of imprisonment while he was also "still a boy." Together they provide affirmation of a life lived fully, and succor as the poet confronts old age, exiled far away from his home country for whom he had sacrificed so much. The revelation is that through his poetry he was given a true image of himself, and that this gift necessitates that he makes no conclusions about his life or bid it farewell. Having regained a sense of loyalty toward his existence, he decides to stay on the train of his life accompanied by his memories and the presence of ordinary folks alongside him.
Khaled Mattawa on "Regained Loyalty' |
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Black Female Poets Inspired by Phillis Wheatley Peters
In 1773, Phillis Wheatley became the first person of African descent to have her work published, "With Wheatley at 250 Legros Georges and co-editor and poet Artress Bethany White paired 20 Wheatley poems with 20 contemporary Black women poets. The poets were asked to 'reinscribe' or write a new version or 'cover' of the original poem and write a short essay based on the experience."
via WORCESTER MAGAZINE |
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What Sparks Poetry:
Gilad Jaffe on Language as Form
"Temporary things don’t want to be permanent—at the end of the day, I like to think they fall in love with their own uncertainty. The purple vinyl seats melting into the Iowan wall, the orange traffic cones stationed at an intersection in Rhode Island, blossoming. 'The yellow horses spilling from their sidewalk stalls, sidestepping fruit vendors in an inharmonious derby…'" |
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