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]]>Jamil Adas (JA) is a Palestinian Canadian who founded The Poetryhood Movement, a platform created for the expression and empowerment of grassroots poetry and visual art.
With the movement gaining traction with events held across town inviting poets to strut their poetry on stage, it is now also spreading to Beirut. His idea of bringing aspiring poets together to publish their works and complement their poems with artists to illustrate them, has become Dubai’s cherished hub for poetry sharing and art collaboration.
Born in Toronto and raised in Dubai, Jamil studied Accounting and when he returned to Dubai, after 5 years in Canada, was progressing in his career as an Accountant. However he didn’t feel fulfilled and so decided to build on his passion for poetry to create something special in the region.
MOR : Why Poetry?
JA : My love for poetry came from music. I used to love learning the lyrics of songs to decipher the deeper meaning of what the artist was trying to say through their music. Often I would also memorize my favorite lyrics. During my time in at university in Halifax, I began experimenting with poetry and had sentences in my head that I started jotting down. One day I came across a flyer by Open Heart Forgery asking for poetry submissions for potential publishing, so I submitted my poem called ‘Social Judgements’. Soon after I found it published in a booklet.
MOR : How do you get to the mental place where you find it in you to write?
JA : I just drift off in a meditative state and words or lines appear in my mind. I could be driving or washing dishes, during these moments I get bite-sized inspirations that lead to a writing ‘flow-state’.
MOR : What do you say to people who don’t understand poetry as a mainstream medium?
JA : I think poetry went to bed and is waking up. Poetry needs to keep evolving as a form of expression and now with the internet, poetry is back in style.
MOR : How did you come up with the idea of Dubai Poetics?
JA : I was shy about my poetry and so devised a platform to solve a problem for myself and in turn many others who felt the same. The goal has been and still is to create a safe & empowering space for aspiring poets who are ready to be vulnerable by sharing their poetry. Today Dubai Poetics falls under the Poetryhood and I’m looking to spread it across the Middle East. That is why Beirut Poetics has launched in January 2018 and once that is somewhat established I look forward to starting Amman Poetics…
MOR : What happens during ‘Poetry Nights’?
JA : Our “Poetry Night” is a spoken word poetry event where poetry lovers come to experience live poetry performances from our featured artists. It’s fun, laid-back and full of honest poetry where you can mingle with other like-minded people.
MOR : Tell me about the Poetry & Writing workshops, can anyone join?
JA : Yes, it is open to anyone with a written text they’d like to share with a private group. At our Poetry & Writing workshops an established poet/writer moderates the workshop and a discussion ensues about the text that has been shared in order for the writer to see how a group that loves literature perceives the given text.
We also host Spoken Word Performance workshops teaching poets how to deliver their poetry effectively on the stage and always create an official Poetry Night event afterwards for participants to test what they’ve learned in front of a real audience.
MOR : What advice do you have for aspiring poets?
JA : Write what you’d like to write about and feel fulfilled with it. Don’t mind about what the poem is going to achieve, it should be principally for yourself. The recognition of others should come as a bonus. However, on the technical side, it is important to listen and learn from people who have perfected the craft. Also, please do not be a self-proclaimed poet and rather instead be recognized as a poet by the public, let THEM call you a poet! (To elaborate on this I highly recommend reading my blog post “There is no I in Poet ”).
MOR : Can you tell me more about the visual arts aspect of the initiative?
JA : We have built a network of awesome visual artists whom I forward submitted poems to every month and they bring them to visual life with their imaginative and technical expertise.
MOR : Where do you go from here?
We are growing The Poetryhood tree one branch at a time, so far we have two branches; Dubai Poetics & Beirut Poetics and I look forward to eventually covering the entire Middle East. I have ideas to develop around poetry, like a poetry podcast, poetry film production, poetry social mixer and publishing an anthology that is a book of collections from different poets featured in The Poetryhood.
MOR : Tell me about your latest project ‘Hamburger Generation’ and how did you come up with the name?
JA : My friend Isra Abu Zayed and I have been avid podcast listeners for ages. While we enjoy the amazing stories from the west, we felt sad that there was a lack of podcast storytelling coming out from where we are, so we decided to do something about it ourselves. The idea of Hamburger Generation | جيلالهمبرجر is to tell bite-sized personal stories in a conversational way. The name comes from how the older generation calls our generation “جيل الهمبرجر” whenever they are disappointed with one of our complaints, for example “My smartphone is not charging fast enough!” that is when an older person would reply something along the lines of “Oh! look at you, a generation of hamburgers!” I’ve heard it is a prominent line in Pakistani culture.
MOR : How do you connect to Palestine, as a Palestinian Canadian living in Dubai?
JA : My parents taught me to be proud of my roots. Palestine, unfortunately, is becoming more and more of an idea than a physical location and the moment we stop recognizing who we are, that idea will vanish. It’s important to say I am Palestinian first, even though I have never been there. It is the least I could do in my short life, to do my best to represent my roots positively. I owe it to my parents, grandparents and ancestors.
MOR : What is your favorite Palestinian Dish?
JA : My mom makes an amazing Shakriyeh, that is to die for!
P O E M S
–
JAMIL ADAS
Reading My Grandfather
Hello reader,
Can you resurrect my grandfather?
I doubt it.
There is no such thing as “speaking with the dead”
That is stupid.
There is, however, reading the dead
Yesterday, I read my grandfather
I saw him dead (again)
Saw him kiss and hug my grandmother for the last time (again)
Saw myself sat in the living room staring through the slightly cracked open door into his bedroom (again) as his 4 daughters surrounded him helplessly (again) with his moans and cries ringing in our ears as his soul was getting dragged away (again).
Let me read him to you…
“أكل تنفعك يوم الهوش“
كان جدي يحكيلنا هالجملة لمّا ما كنّا نخلص صحنّا
فأتحمّس
فآكل
و أتهاوش
كان يسألني
عندك تفاحة اليوم؟ و يأشر على خدّي
فبيشتري تفاحة ببوسة
و البطّيخ من راسي بإثنين
و العنب من دأني بثلاثة
آه .. كان يبوس دأني
يا جدّي
يا جدّي.. شفتك عبتعجز زيّ ماشفتني عبكبر
شفتك عبتقرأ كلّ الجرايد مدوّر للصحوة العربية
كإنها مخبّاي بشي كلمة أو جملة عبيستنّوك تقرأهم
يا جدي إنتَ بدايتي
إنتَ بداية كلّ ما أرى و يُرى
إنتَ نَفَخت فيّي الأدب، و يريتك تشوف عظمت نفختك
It is difficult to say fare”well” to a man dying in pain.
It is difficult, so this time I said fare”better”
Here is to you سيدو
I hope you are in a fare”better” place
* * *
Spit Blood
Do you ever spit blood
because you try to taste life too much?
Do you ever max out on a human experience?
like “I love you”
but you promised your psyche
“I will never say these 3 words again”
but when the compass points, you follow.
You find out – truth is not on a straight path;
it is on a spiral.
Sometimes life is limiting
so you lucid dream
realize every desire is at the finger-tips of your mind
and so is every despair.
“Tread-carefully” is an advice that enters your right ear
and exits ear left
you are left with 4 stitched spots on your head
a broken finger
a broken shoulder
a chipped tooth;
spit blood.
“Tread-carefully” almost robbed you from your life,
as you’ve seen it swindle many others.
Try it all and try it now…
Emoticons in a poem 
– stupid – spit blood
A metaphor about the taste of life in your mouth
– no one got it – spit blood
Speak to God in your own language – بما أنّك العليم, السميع, الرقيب, الشهيد, الباطن أقرب إلينا من حبل الوريد
– everyone claims God solely for their tongue – spit blood
Spit blood out of your jugular veins
and don’t forget to taste it
fully.
Spit blood
Spit Life.
* * *
Aristotle’s Ingredients
Logos commends my rational flow of logic
when I mold sense into a box
that never surmounts to anything special,
but Pathos…
Well, Pathos could never play it cool.
Pathos boils blood when thirsty for soup.
Pathos likes to believe I have wings
and then push me off the bridge.
Pathos can find meaning when carving out initials with my blood-dripping nails.
I need to keep Pathos on a leash,
sporadically playing with my powers I can never plan ahead.
He’s a bulldog and I’m a skeleton constantly fleeing his thirsty bite.
At the end of the day, I’ve got Ethos on my side.
For whom other than I will be my body’s main guide?
I, who commands my hand to grip and it will clinch
I, who commands my tongue to roll the “R” and it will ring in your ear.
Ethos hands me the quill facing my book of destiny
giving me the choice between my brain or my heart.
But it also makes me think that I am a god.
As long as I am in a Zen state of mind
these ingredients bow to my will and thought.
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Spoken Word Poetry
Welcome to an art form that’s recited and performed on stage, highlighting the richness of word play, intonation and voice articulation. On trend nowadays, Word Poetry embraces diverse modalities like poetry slams, jazz poetry, hip hop, traditional poetry readings, even comedy routines and prose monologues.
Poetry – the Clear Expression Of Mixed Feelings
Why Poetry?
Farah: Poetry can make me laugh, helping me to celebrate beauty as it allows me to express pain. I began writing after my parents divorced to transcend my anger. My father moved to Brazil and remarried, and I stayed in Sharjah with my mother, who is my rock in life. At 17 I became confused with my identify and started wearing the hijab. I was trying to figure things out and thought religion would support me, but it didn’t last long. When I performed spoken word poetry, I gained confidence. Poetry allows me to channel my feelings in a way that’s healing and creative.
Dana: Poetry processes feelings, helping me to come to terms with the bittersweet reality of life on earth. When I was 14 my family moved to Riyadh, from Jordan. It was there that I started writing, but the trigger into poetry was kick started when Al Qaeda attacked our residential compound in 2003. Thirty-nine people were killed, and over 160 wounded when bombs went off at three compounds. The incident changed my life; it was devastating. We then left to the US to recover and afresh. My father left his job and had to start over. Writing helped me heal from the incident; it became my therapy and my lifeline.
You both got into poetry at a young age. What did you do to develop your passion?
Farah: When I was 13 I use to write for Poetry Soup online and published over 200 poems with them. At 16 I began attending the Poeticians, a group of writers and listeners that have come together to share their work. That’s where I met Hind Shoufani, the founder, she has been a powerful influence in my life. These poetry events would often happen in bars and I would go with my mother, sometimes dressed in costume for my performances.
Dana: When we left to the US after the terrorist attack, writing took over. I wrote for my high school magazine and entered writing competitions. When I graduated high school, my parents moved to Dubai and I stayed behind to attend the University of Kansas to study Business and English. I hated it and desperately wanted to study theatre. So against my parents’ wishes, I switched my major, finishing my degree in Chicago. When I moved to Amman I met Hind Shoufani and also joined the Poeticians, and it’s an inspiring community to be a part of. The talented poets that grew to become a tight knit group of Arab female poets encouraged me.
In what ways does your creative expression, strengthen your identity as young Palestinian women born outside of Palestine?
Farah: When I meet people that call themselves feminists, I don’t relate to them because I feel it’s enough to be a woman, it’s unnecessary to state it. Being who I am and defining myself through poetry and telling my story, is enough. If I keep dwelling on being Palestinian, I fall into a box that limits me. Yes, I am Palestinian, and I am proud, but I have other things to talk about like life, death, spirituality; universal themes we all deal with.
Dana: I have countless angles to unveil; as a humanist, a woman, a third culture kid, an environmentalist. My poem Love Letter from Palestine that gained popularity was written through my passion for theatrical performance. It felt more authentic to tell the story of Palestine through a universal character, instead of via my own personal experiences.
Since poetry is not a mainstream medium, people nowadays are not familiar with the power of poetry to break open heart and foster change. What would you say to them?
Farah: Fairuz, Um Kulthoum, Nina Simone and Leonard Cohen sing poetry. Those who say, “Poetry is boring” have an image of classroom romantic poetry about daffodils perhaps. I cannot say, “Music is boring” just as I cannot say that I do not like one genre of music.
Dana: Poetry is intrinsic to our human evolution. Poetry is how knowledge was handed down, through oral tradition that was presented in verse because the rhythm made it the stories memorable. Poetry will always be current, through folklore, hip-hop, slam and beyond. It is engrained in our DNA. I have two, music and poetry collaborations – 1 soulful acoustic and 1 electronic. I find when people hear spoken word through music they feel it deeply and naturally connect to it. Even those who don’t care for poetry feel it. Performance poetry is more affective and captures the heart; it is more powerful when and enacted rather than just read.
What do well-written poems have in common and what do poorly written poems have in common?
Farah: Poetry is like storytelling and spoken word pieces allow you to improvise with other mediums like music. It’s adaptable on stage. I love to improvise my poems with music. A good poem feels genuine. I dislike preachy poems, even though I have written one called The Shisha, which I find very unpleasant.
Dana: When I write something from the heart I feel it’s well written. There is a journey, there’s an introduction to a concept that comes full circle. I’m a big fan of metaphor that highlights a semblance or similarity that is so simple and eloquent, or so complex and appropriate. But ultimately a good poem comes from a deep truth. That trick is to add personal experience that you can relate to. I love word play and rhythm; it’s my style. To me interesting metaphors that allow you to reimagine something. It takes practice and the more you write the more you get through the old tropes. If you’re not writing every day, you will produce regurgitations of what people have heard before.
What advice do you have for aspiring poets?
Dana: I write every day because I filter through the mundane and then can start to find one’s inner voice. Perform often as practice makes perfect, and sometimes the ball drops on the 50th time I perform something. Sometimes I have an epiphany that takes the performance to a whole new level.
Farah: If you’re already writing you are already in the mode of expression. If you have the urge to express, go with it. It’s important not to look at poetry as this grand thing that’s going to change the world; it should be done for you. Some of the simplest poems have opened my mind and helped me understand the world.
Who are your favorite poets?
Farah: Sylvia Plath, Mark Strand, Stephen Dunn, Mahmood Darwich, Ahmad Matar, Tamim Al-Barghouthi.
Dana: Saul Williams, Rumi, Pablo Neruda, Kate Tempest…
Where do you go from here?
Farah: I want to make Arabic more accessible by writing more Arabic texts and organizing informal workshops where people don’t feel criticized for their imperfect language. Modern Standard Arabic can be intimidating, given that it is not spoken, but rather academic. I often get criticized for my Arabic. I realize it’s not perfect. My biggest step now is going to London to study a wide range of performance. I want to challenge myself on stage with all the taboos I have faced to help me overcome personal fears. I’m also working on finishing a poetry book of my writings.
Dana: Earlier, I felt it was my responsibility to represent the region. I was privileged to have a western democratic education allowing me to be more self-aware, but it’s not my only label. I write myself into and out of mental states poetically. Poetry is a great healing method to find an internal authentic voice, so I would like to publish more. This forthcoming guided journal invites others to speak from the heart. Poetry changes the world by speaking straight to the soul, bypassing the mind. I would love to facilitate writing workshops with these tools in Palestine and worldwide. The Human Spirit Project is my nonprofit commitment to telling stories that highlight the resilience of the human spirit. Stories, poems, films, plays, which bring out our shared similarities, which outweigh our perceived differences. In that way the world gets a little bit smaller, and more empathy is created within communities.
The Poeticians
The Poeticians is a group of writers, readers, listeners, lovers and word warriors that have come together to share their work, thoughts, ambitions and fears with small intimate audiences in Beirut, Amman and Dubai. The poets are of all nationalities and read in English, Arabic and French. We had one Italian poem too. Run by Palestinian filmmaker and writer, Hind Shoufani, the group was established in 2007 and has been reading and performing since in three cities.
The group is an elastic entity, with no rules, no boundaries, no censorship, no membership system or structure. We put out the call for a reading, and you join us. Email us at [email protected]
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