Nigel is one of our new Dubai poeticians, he is a great instigator of literary adventures and his dedication to spreading awareness on the Israeli Occupation is something I find very moving, unique and necessary. I thank him for coming forward and sharing his work with us, and for his strong words seeking justice. Rock on.

Cat’s Cradle

Our kittens delight their fleeting youth with balls

of wool or string to chase through cosy halls,

to pounce on plants that cling to table-tops

then gorge on leaves like locusts stripping crops.

Young Bethlehem cats chase shadow-mice through the shells of houses,

Ramla cats still hide in holes in spattered red-rag blouses,

Tulkaram cats feast on dead flesh that slops out from foundations,

while Jenin cats await the rescue of the late United Nations.

And when they’ve spent their hours in kittens’ games

to pounce and leap and pad the luscious flowers concealing mines

or play with string or razor wire, the claims

of each sweet-smelling clot of ripped-out crimson Columbines,

in time are paid in full by a generation:

a glass of honeyed-milk; a line of blood – poured out in libation.