I loved you, my love,
there’s no doubt or denial,
no justification or synopsis,
there isn’t even a story.
It was a collision.
The stairway was rising,
the heavens descending,
and the roads had softened.
I loved you, my love,
as words gather in a poem
and remain forever,
immortal, true, and quotable,
just as death ceases to be
a reason for end or separation,
I loved you for life
to become elegant, dignified,
and purposeful, for the seasons
to succeed one another,
rhythmic and precise,
for cruelty to rationalize
our capacity to resist.
There’s no doubt or denial.
Look at them as they rise,
for twenty years,
my sighs,
my gaze that recognizes
you in an instant
whenever you pass in a breeze, look at them as they break,
my steps over sidewalks
and king-size beds,
and you’ll know, my love,
that I loved you without evidence, without target or demand.
Maya Abu Al-Hayyat is a Beirut-born, Palestinian novelist and poet living in Jerusalem. She is the author of four collections of poems, including You Can Be the Last Leaf: Selected Poems (Milkweed Editions, 2022), translated by Fady Joudah; four novels, including the latest, No One Knows His Blood Type (Dar Al-Adab, 2013); and numerous children’s stories, including The Blue Pool of Questions (Penny Candy Books, LLC, 2017). Her work has appeared in A Bird Is Not a Stone: An Anthology of Contemporary Palestinian Poetry (Freight Books, 2014). Abu Al-Hayyat is the editor of The Book of Ramallah: A City in Short Fiction (Comma Press, 2021) and the director of Palestine Writing Workshop, an institution that seeks to encourage reading in Palestinian communities through creative writing projects and storytelling with children and teachers.
Milkweed Editions grants permission.
Maya Abu Al-Hayyat’s latest book is You Can Be the Last Leaf: Selected Poems, translated by Fady Joudah (Milkweed Editions, 2022). Visit with her and her work at the Miami Book Fair 2022 on 11/16 at noon virtually at MiamiBookFairOnline.com. Cover art by: Milkweed Editions.
Welcome to SWWIM Every Day’s preview coverage of Miami Book Fair (MBF) 2021! The poets whose work you’ll be reading every weekday from October 25 through November 12 are just a few of the many authors from around the world participating in this year’s MBF, the nation’s largest gathering of writers and readers of all ages. They all look forward to sharing their work, thoughts, and ideas both in person and online. Between November 14 and November 21, new poet conversations and readings will be launched and available for free on miamibookfaironline.com (in addition to other content). For more information, visit the website and follow MBF on Instagram and Twitter at @miamibookfair and use the hashtag #miamibookfair2021.