S2E14: Grounding Poem with Antonia Estela Pérez of Herban Cura: The Earth is Closing on Us
About this episode:
In this Grounding Practice, Antonia Estela Pérez of Herban Cura, recites a poem, “The Earth is Closing on Us” by renowned Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish. The poem serves as a reflection on the ongoing struggles and the enduring spirit of the Palestinian people. Through Darwish’s evocative language, we are invited to contemplate themes of loss, hope, and the human connection to the Earth.
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If you want to listen to the Grounding Poem that accompanies this episode, check that out here.
If you want to listen to the full episode that accompanies this Grounding Poem that started this interview, check that out separately here.
Full Episode Transcript:
Emily Race-Newmark: [00:00:00] This grounding practice is a poem brought to you by Antonia Estella Perez of Herban Cura. You can listen to our full interview over at that separate episode wherever you tune into our podcast.
Allow yourself a couple moments now to transition into a space of receptivity. Taking a couple of deep breaths.
And allowing yourself to shut off any other distractions just for the next couple of minutes.
Hopefully finding yourself in a comfortable position. And with that I'll turn it over to Antonia who will share this poem.
Herban Cura: I want to start, by sharing a poem and ground us in the realities that are happening in Palestine at this [00:01:00] moment, and to ground us in the resilience of Palestinian people. This is a poem, by Mahmoud Darwish, a Palestinian and this poem is called, "The Earth is Closing on Us".
So just wanting to invite folks to take a deep breath, and listen to these words.
"The earth is closing on us, pushing us through the last passage, and we tear off our limbs to pass through. The earth is squeezing us. I wish we were its wheat, so we could die and live again. I wish the earth was our mother, so she'd be kind to us. I wish we were pictures on the rocks for our dreams to carry as mirrors.
We saw the faces of those who will [00:02:00] throw our children out of the window of this last space. Our stars will hang up mirrors. Where should we go after the last frontiers? Where should the birds fly after the last sky? Where should the plants sleep after the last breath of air? We will write our names with scarlet steam.
We will cut off the hand of the song to be finished by our flesh. We will die here in the last passage. Here and here our blood will plant its olive tree.
Emily Race-Newmark: Thank you for your listening. Thank you for your presence. If you want to hear more from Antonia, please head over to our interview, our separate interview.[00:03:00]
We hope to see you there.