New | Poetry | Tea in the Desert | Hoshang Merchant

                                                                              

Original artwork by Rajni

 Tea in the Desert:

A Poem for Iran

Afsanneh, Maimouneh,

Parvaneh, Nargis and

Nasim

Packed a picnic basket

Tea things, date cakes,

Sandwiches 

                                                                           

        

They wore

Scarves, veils, chador

And went for tea in the 

Desert

They walked out

Before sun-up

And walked and

Walked to the desert's 

Edge

Then they saw a sand 

Atoll

So, they climbed it

The air nimble, the sun

Low

They saw another, and

Another

So, they climbed all the 

Atolls

One after another

Behind them they left

Father, priest, and 

Brother

                                                                             
     

But still there was

Another

The highest atoll to

Climb

From where they could

See

To Yazd, Kerman, Bam

They took off their

Veils

And let loose their hair

For they were flushed

Hot

                                                                               

   

Nasim's hair was best

In red fiery points, a

Halo 

And when they sat 

Down to tea 

The sun was at its 

Highest

They sweated blood, 

Felt faint

Curled up in each

Other's arms

Kissed

And slept and slept...

The wind whistled

Around them

And this is how they

Had their tea in the 

Desert

Afsanneh, Maimouneh,

Parvaneh, Nargis and

Nasim.

(Hoshang Merchant is India's first openly gay poet who lived in Iran during the first days of the Islamic Revolution, 1976 to 1979).