SCAPE to COUNTRY
30 Waterscapes in the midst of Melbourne hard lockdown (5km radio). In time of being grounded one can only think of the being and his or her home, her country. "My Country. From the lisp of the blackbird… From the saddening huskiness of the flute… From the flickering sounds of the folk songs From the sighs of the minaret… From a cloud at sunset woven by a chimney and by the wound of the bricks of the decorated and widespread villages… From the whispers of a star settled in our east From a story between a rose and a lily From the gasp of a woodcutter returning with a weary axe The sparrow is delighted to build his nest among us And the willow trees spin their homes in the brooklets Our boundaries are protected by jasmine and dew drops Our flowers are blossoming like coloured thoughts… In my country the rocks are in love, and the vines are addicted Our country was there… and all times came after it." – by Nizar Qabbani, – translated by Norm a Medawar Guillermo Aranda-Me