The Bedouin's Song Poem by Nizar Sartawi

i'm just a bedouin:
i live in a tent -
cozy an' fair
its fabric woven
from rough goat-hair -
a shady cover
in the summer
a rain-proof shelter
in the winter

my possessions:
a single garment - a tall black robe
that I call a thobe
a pair of worn out sandals
a coffee kit
and other little things
i put in a sack
that may not fit
with countrysiders' appetites
or urbanites'

my homeland:
all this infinite expanse
of deep beige sands

my sole companion:
a faithful camel
who carries me
and all my stuff
and together we cross the endless desert
and when i sing
some cameleer song
he gets so light
out of delight
and makes as if to fly
towards the sky

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