A Letter From A Stupid Woman

(A Letter to a Man)

(1)

My dear Master,

This is a letter from a stupid woman

Has a stupid woman before me, written to you?

My name? Lets put names aside

Rania, or Zaynab

or Hind or Hayfa

The silliest thing we carry, my Master - are names

(2)

My Master:

I am frightened to tell you my thoughts

I am frightened - if I did -

that the heavens would burn

For your East, my dear Master,

confiscate blue letters

confiscate dreams from the treasure chests of women

Practices suppression, upon the emotions of women

It uses knives…

and cleavers…

to speak to women

and butchers spring and passions

and black plaits

And your East, dear Master,

Manufactures the delicate crown of the East

from the skulls of women

(3)

Don't criticize me, Master

If my writing is poor

For I write and the sword is behind my door

And beyond the room is the sound of wind and howling dogs

My master!

'Antar al Abys is behind my door!

He will butcher me

If he saw my letter

He will cut my head off

If I spoke of my torture

He will cut my head off

If he saw the sheerness of my clothes

For your East, my dear Master,

Surrounds women with spears

And your East, my dear Master

elects the men to become Prophets,

and buries the women in the dust.

(4)

Don't become annoyed!

My dear Master, from these lines

Don't become annoyed!

If I smash the complaints blocked for centuries

If I unsealed my consciousness

If I ran away…

From the domes of the Harem in the castles

If I rebelled, against my death…

against my grave, against my roots…

and the giant slaughter house….

Don't become annoyed, my dear Master,

If I revealed to you my feelings

For the Eastern man

Is not concerned with poetry or feelings

The Eastern man - and forgive my insolence - does not understand women

but over the sheets.

(5)

            I am sorry my master -If I have insolently attacked the kingdom of Men

for the great literature of course -

is the literature of men

And love has always been

the allotment of men…

And sex has always been

a drug sold to men

A senile fairytale, the freedom of women in our countries

For there is no freedom

Other than, the freedom of men…

My Master

Say all you wish of me. It does not matter to me:

Shallow.. Stupid.. Crazy.. Simple minded.

It does not concern me anymore..

For whoever writes about her concerns…

in the logic of Men is called

a stupid woman

and didn't I tell you in the beginning

that I am a stupid woman?