【Poem Reading Tuesday】Meeting at an Airport by Taha Muhammad Ali

Meeting at an Airport
by Taha Muhammad Ali 
Translated by Peter Cole, Yahya Hijazi, and Gabriel Levin

You asked me once,
on our way back
from the midmorning
trip to the spring:
“What do you hate,
and who do you love?”
 
And I answered,
from behind the eyelashes
of my surprise,
my blood rushing
like the shadow
cast by a cloud of starlings:
“I hate departure . . .
I love the spring
and the path to the spring,
and I worship the middle
hours of morning.”
And you laughed . . .
and the almond tree blossomed
and the thicket grew loud with nightingales.
 
. . . A question
now four decades old:
I salute that question's answer;
and an answer
as old as your departure;
I salute that answer's question . . .
 
And today,
it's preposterous,
here we are at a friendly airport
by the slimmest of chances,
and we meet.
Ah, Lord!
we meet.
And here you are
asking—again,
it's absolutely preposterous—
I recognized you
but you didn't recognize me.
“Is it you?!”
But you wouldn't believe it.
And suddenly
you burst out and asked:
“If you're really you,
What do you hate
and who do you love?!”
 
And I answered—
my blood
fleeing the hall,
rushing in me
like the shadow
cast by a cloud of starlings:
“I hate departure,
and I love the spring,
and the path to the spring,
and I worship the middle
hours of morning.”
 
And you wept,
and flowers bowed their heads,
and doves in the silk of their sorrow stumbled.

Source: So What (Copper Canyon Press, 2006)

About the author
Taha Muhammad Ali | Poetry Foundation

【活动说明】
欣赏了诗歌之后，欢迎大家在跟帖里对诗歌进行点评，分享读后感。本活动主要是为大家提供一个阅读英文诗歌的窗口，以赏诗为主，不要求写诗。如果大家偶尔灵感闪现，有感而发地想要写写诗的话，大家可以尝试用相同的或者相关的诗歌标题，写出不一样的英文诗，在赏诗写诗的过程中自娱自乐。写出来的英文诗如果愿意分享的话，欢迎以主帖或者跟帖的方式分享。谢谢大家的关注和支持！

Let's get some learning from the fun and get some fun from the learning!

更多我的博客文章>>> Owl and Nightingale 【Poem Reading Tuesday】Meeting at an Airport by Taha Muhammad Ali 【新春对对碰】我和AI碰出了同样的爱：The Same Love When Fire Runs into Ice 【Poem Reading Tuesday】Fire and Ice by Robert Frost

Happy Tuesday! Happy Year of the Dragon!

欢迎大家在跟帖里对诗歌进行点评，分享读后感。

小西，新春快乐，平安喜乐 ~ ~

谢谢小西主持周二的诗歌赏析活动，辛苦了！

Departure and reunion are common themes in romantic poetry..

盈盈新年好！龙年吉祥如意！

盈盈无私奉献美坛，劳苦功高，向盈盈致敬，向盈盈学习！

不敢当，义工一个。大家一起玩，一起学。：）

This poem is beautiful...

Yes, it's. It seems a good fit for Valentine's Day :)

It's about love, loss, the enduring power of connection,

and the constancy of human emotions amidst the fluctuations

of life.

Learning is fun!

ChatGPT 的诗歌分析，供大家参考，详见里面：

ChatGPT Poem Analysis:

The poem "Meeting at an Airport" by Taha Muhammad Ali, translated by Peter Cole, Yahya Hijazi, and Gabriel Levin, is a poignant reflection on the passage of time, the enduring nature of human emotions, and the irony of chance encounters.

The poem begins with a recollection of a conversation between the speaker and someone else, likely a friend or a loved one, during a trip to a spring. The question posed, "What do you hate, and who do you love?" is simple yet profound, delving into the core of human emotions and preferences.

The speaker's response reveals a deep connection to nature and the beauty of the world around them. They express a dislike for departure, symbolizing the pain of separation and transience, while expressing a profound love for the spring, the path leading to it, and the serene moments of the morning. This response is rich with imagery, evoking feelings of longing, appreciation for nature, and a sense of reverence for the passage of time.

The poem then shifts to the present, where the speaker and the person they had conversed with decades ago unexpectedly meet again at an airport. The reunion is marked by disbelief and astonishment, emphasizing the unpredictability of life's twists and turns. The repetition of the question, "What do you hate, and who do you love?" serves as a poignant reminder of the enduring significance of the original exchange.

Despite the passage of time and the changes that have occurred, the essence of the speaker's response remains unchanged. They reiterate their feelings of love for spring and morning, and their aversion to departure. This repetition highlights the constancy of human emotions amidst the fluctuations of life.

The poem concludes with a powerful image of emotion, as the person with whom the speaker is reunited weeps, and nature seems to mourn alongside them. This final stanza reinforces the emotional depth of the encounter and the enduring impact of the original question and response.

Overall, "Meeting at an Airport" is a meditation on love, loss, and the cyclical nature of life, encapsulated within the framework of a chance encounter. Through vivid imagery and poignant reflection, the poem captures the complexity of human emotions and the enduring power of connection.

 

ChatGPT分析完了，我再补充两句。我一看“机场”二字就来劲

You asked me once,
on our way back
from the midmorning
trip to the spring:
“What do you hate,
and who do you love?”

我感觉问的是“你喜欢哪个？波音还是空客？”

Hahaha, 老李真幽默！老李有经验，麻烦你给他们推荐一下，哈哈哈。

This is a poem of and on vicissitudes, glistened with tears.

That said, glistening tears could be pearls of wisdom.

With pearls of wisdom, we may be able to look at

the bright side when things are not going too well.

Pearls may be swallowed up by darkness. Maybe not, if

darkness isn't truly overpowering. Thank you, 小西!

Thank you, 蓝灵, for sharing your beautiful and deep thoughts.

A heart-wrenching story about love. A good pick, reminding

Thank you for commenting and sharing.

This is beautiful, very relatab!e! Thanks for sharing!

As long as no logic, can be a poem:) Such a long poem,

makes me faint~:)

“doves in the silk of their sorrow stumbled”这是神马意思？

Google translate: 鸽子在悲伤的丝绸中跌跌撞撞。是对人的情绪的一种描述，详见ChatGPT 诗歌分析。

ChatGPT 的诗歌分析，供大家参考，详见里面：

ChatGPT Poem Analysis:

The poem "Meeting at an Airport" by Taha Muhammad Ali, translated by Peter Cole, Yahya Hijazi, and Gabriel Levin, is a poignant reflection on the passage of time, the enduring nature of human emotions, and the irony of chance encounters.

The poem begins with a recollection of a conversation between the speaker and someone else, likely a friend or a loved one, during a trip to a spring. The question posed, "What do you hate, and who do you love?" is simple yet profound, delving into the core of human emotions and preferences.

The speaker's response reveals a deep connection to nature and the beauty of the world around them. They express a dislike for departure, symbolizing the pain of separation and transience, while expressing a profound love for the spring, the path leading to it, and the serene moments of the morning. This response is rich with imagery, evoking feelings of longing, appreciation for nature, and a sense of reverence for the passage of time.

The poem then shifts to the present, where the speaker and the person they had conversed with decades ago unexpectedly meet again at an airport. The reunion is marked by disbelief and astonishment, emphasizing the unpredictability of life's twists and turns. The repetition of the question, "What do you hate, and who do you love?" serves as a poignant reminder of the enduring significance of the original exchange.

Despite the passage of time and the changes that have occurred, the essence of the speaker's response remains unchanged. They reiterate their feelings of love for spring and morning, and their aversion to departure. This repetition highlights the constancy of human emotions amidst the fluctuations of life.

The poem concludes with a powerful image of emotion, as the person with whom the speaker is reunited weeps, and nature seems to mourn alongside them. This final stanza reinforces the emotional depth of the encounter and the enduring impact of the original question and response.

Overall, "Meeting at an Airport" is a meditation on love, loss, and the cyclical nature of life, encapsulated within the framework of a chance encounter. Through vivid imagery and poignant reflection, the poem captures the complexity of human emotions and the enduring power of connection.

 

哈哈哈，其实，这首诗算不上是长诗，只是让大家见识一下不同风格的诗而已。我见过的诗有长达十几页的 ：）

Thank you, 虫虫！I'm glad you enjoyed it.