Mahmoud Darwish Dies in Houston

Mahmoud Darwish, renowned Palestinian poet and man of letters, died in Houston on Saturday.

According to the Houston Chronicle:

The predominant Palestinian poet, whose work has been translated into more than 20 languages and won numerous international awards, died following open heart surgery at a Houston hospital, said Nabil Abu Rdeneh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

The New York Times also mourns the world's loss and notes that Darwish will receive a state funeral on Tuesday in the West Bank.

Darwish, known for his political activism as well as his poetry, became a symbol of life in exile living in the Soviet Union, Israel, Lebanon, Tunisia, Egypt, and France. It is perhaps fitting that he found an end in Houston, a city known for its diversity and open acceptance of people seeking a new life. Houston Grand Opera celebrated the city's unique status as a haven for immigrants in its May performance of "The Refuge." Perhaps the place of Darwish's death adds to the greater symbolism of his life. Either that, or he just knew we had a great Medical Center.

Houstonist enjoys a good political poem, so to honor the passing of the great Mahmoud Darwish, here's one of our favorites.

I Come From There by Mahmoud Darwish

I come from there and I have memories
Born as mortals are, I have a mother
And a house with many windows,
I have brothers, friends,
And a prison cell with a cold window.
Mine is the wave, snatched by sea-gulls,
I have my own view,
And an extra blade of grass.
Mine is the moon at the far edge of the words,
And the bounty of birds,
And the immortal olive tree.
I walked this land before the swords
Turned its living body into a laden table.

I come from there. I render the sky unto her mother
When the sky weeps for her mother.
And I weep to make myself known
To a returning cloud.
I learnt all the words worthy of the court of blood
So that I could break the rule.
I learnt all the words and broke them up
To make a single word: Homeland...

Photograph courtesy of Mahmoud Darwish's Official Website.