Posthumous poem: Memories of a dead woman from walking in her city

Of the fleeting world
I liked the sight of geranium pots,
on window sills of houses
and the wind’s kiss on compulsory hijab*
In search of my tresses.
I dearly loved to walk under the raindrops
overflowing with hope of finding my lost half.
I hated the campaign posters for political candidates
and the framed pictures in offices and banks
poking me in the eye like a nail
for, they saw time as the footprints of kings and presidents.
I never tired of seeing clenched fists;
waves coming from the end of the sea, at times,
to wash away the footprints of everything
but freedom, peace and love,
to color the life blood in the vessels of death.

* hijab /hɪˈdʒɑːb,ˈhɪdʒɑːb/
noun
noun: hijab; plural noun: hijabs
a head covering worn in public by some Muslim women.

• the religious code which governs the wearing of the hijab.

Farideh Hassanzadeh
(Translated by Mojdeh Bahar)