Enter Genetics

It took the world 197,000 years to make me.

My dna formed leisurely across centuries,
like a slow-cooked meal.

My nose preceded me into the world,
as did my hands, my short temper,

the locks of my hair, my thirst
for poetry and books, how quickly

I grow bored, and my struggle
to fall in love. My peculiar mind

must have inhabited another woman’s body
before I came around. I have sailed from eternity

to the world of questions: my consciousness
in one hand, and my fear in another.

Two chains around my neck
house all my ancestors.

I wonder which of all my bodies
experienced the greatest joy?

Which body swam
in the company of waves?

When was I a fighter? Or a lover
annihilating men’s hearts?

In this body, I possess bones,
flesh, brown eyes, and I suffer

beneath the skies
of consciousness and stars.

I spend all my time asking questions
if only to imagine a companion along the road.

And I will not bequeath my progeny
to this world, but, like Al-Mutanabbi,

I will hand down verses, lines,
and questions to accompany humanity

into every future,
like genetic chains.

- Translated from Arabic by Sara Elkamel