Two Brothers
By Majid Naficy
In Memory of Sa’id*
One morning before going to kindergarten
I walked out of the house
To watch ducks.
You were standing at the doorway
And accompanied me
With a pacifier in your mouth
And a lump in your throat.
We went to the fork
Where Fadan Waterway
Splits in two.
Sometimes our nannies Zahra and Sakineh
Washed clothes there
And took us with them.
We would lean against a boulder
In front of bubbling water from the ground
And watch other kids.
They did stone skipping on the surface of the water
And said: “Skip, skip, how many skips?”
The ducks were blowing their horns.
We told them: “You’re unclean! You’re unclean!”
They dipped their heads into the water
To cleanse themselves.
We followed them
Until the waterway
Hid behind a wall
And a gate led us to an alley.
We wanted to return
But the latch wouldn’t yield.
So we kept walking until we reached Willow Town.
There, metal ghouls
Were demolishing houses
To widen the street
And because of dust
My eyes could not see yours.
Suddenly Hassan the axman
Arrived running
Wearing a loincloth
With two clanging axes
On his back.
He stood and asked: “Pretties!
What are you doing here?”
Fearful
We held each other’s hands,
Passed by demolished houses
And after much wandering
In Old Circle and the Jewish ghetto
We reached Sugar Cracker Crossroad
Which was a familiar place.
There, the house of Uncle!
There, the knocker of his door!
Surprise! Our mother opened the door.
With long hair
And open arms
How beautiful she looked.
She had stopped by
Every police station
But we came to her presence
With our own feet.
From her harsh words
The lump in your throat burst
And your pacifier fell.
But her gaze behind eyeglasses
Praised both of us.
April 21, 2020
* My younger brother Sa’id Naficy (April 30, 1954 to September 9, 1982) and his wife Fahimeh Okhovat were killed by the Khomeini regime in Tehran. The method of murder and the place of their burial are not known.
دو برادر
مجيد نفيسي
به یاد سعید*
یک صبح پیش از رفتن به کودکستان
از خانه بیرون زدم
برای تماشای مرغابیها.
تو دم در ایستاده بودی
و همراهم آمدی
با پستانکی به دهان
و بغضی در گلو.
رفتیم سر لت
جایی که مادی فدن
دو پاره میشود.
دایههامان زهرا و سکینه
گاهی آنجا رخت میشستند
و ما را هم با خود میبردند.
پشت به خرسنگی مینشستیم
رو به آبی که از زمین میجوشید
و بچههای دیگر را تماشا میکردیم.
ریگی را روی آب میسراندند
و میگفتند: "سُری, سُری, چند سُری؟"
مرغابیها در شیپورهاشان میدمیدند
به آنها میگفتیم: "نجسی! نجسی!"
سرشان را زیر آب میکردند
تا خود را بشویند.
آنها را دنبال کردیم
تا جایی که مادی
پشت دیواری پنهان میشد
و دری ما را به کوچهای میبرد.
چون خواستیم برگردیم
چفت در, باز نمیشد
ناگزیر رفتیم تا به بیدآباد رسیدیم.
آنجا غولهای آهنی
خانهها را خراب میکردند
برای خیابانکشی
و از فرط گردوخاک
چشم, چشم را نمیدید.
ناگاه حسن تبری
از راه رسید
دوان, دوان
با لنگی به کمر
و دو تبر بر دوش
تاقتاقکنان.
ایستاد و پرسید: "خوشگلها!
اینجا چه میکنید؟"
هراسان
دست یکدیگر را گرفتیم
از کنار خانههای ویران گذشتیم
و پس از سرگردانیهای بسیار
در میدان کهنه و جوباره
به چارراه شکرشکن رسیدیم
که جایی آشنا بود.
آنک خانهی عمو!
آنک کوبهی در!
شگفتا! مادرمان در را باز کرد.
با گیسوی بلند
و دستهای گشوده
چه زیبا مینمود.
به همهی کلانتریها
سر زده بود
و ما با پای خود
به پیشگاهش آمده بودیم.
از حرفهای تندش
بغض تو ترکید
و پستانکت فروافتاد
اما نگاهش پشت عینک
هر دوی ما را میستود.
بیستویکم آوریل دوهزاروبیست
* برادر کوچکترم سعید نفیسی (دهم اردیبهشت هزاروسیصدوسیوسه تا هژدهم شهریور هزاروسیصدوشصتویک) و همسرش فهیمه اخوت بدست رژیم خمینی در تهران به قتل رسیدند, اما شیوهی قتل و محل دفنشان روشن نیست.
from Hugh:
Thanks, Majid. Very poignant. Blessings for your brother.
Best regards
from radio host Firoozeh Khatibi:
I like to read this wonderful poem. Will call you in the next couple of days to review.
Best f
from Hamid:
yadesh bekheir Majid jan. Sa'id was a good man...
from Azad:
This is a great poem Dad. Sa’id actually looks a little like me when I was younger. Thank you for sending it.
Love you.
Best,
from Salman:
Dear uncle Majid,
Very beautiful and sensational! I can clearly imagine those two little brothers wandering around on the Isfahan city’s streets looking for new experiences out of curiosity and excitement. May God bless uncle Sáid!
from Naser Mohajer:
Very nice indeed. tried to submit. Didn't go through.
Stay safe
from Mohsen:
This colorful and beautiful poem is about brotherhood, and the rite of passage of Sa'id whose pacifier falls from his mouth at the end of the poem because he had taken a risk and experienced the world independently of the adults. Sa'id also carries a lump in his throat which somehow signals to his tragic murder at age 28 by the theocracy in Iran. This poem is also about the city of Isfahan at the time of a huge transition with its system of "madi" canalsand the old Jewish neighborhood and...
from Naomi Shihab Nye:
How haunting - what is known and what remains unknown.
Thank you, Majid, very moving, naomi
from Casey:
This is a great, poem! thank you for sharing. your brother looks so much like you and azad!
I'm glad you still have such beautiful and precious memories together.
from Moin:
So touching.
Love
from Shayda:
Beautiful poignant poem Majid Jan. I enjoyed walking the streets of Esfahan with you and Said, and knowing him in a way I never could, through the eyes of your poem. Thank you.
And seeing mamanjun too, in her wrath and relief. Always waiting for her children to come home, it seems. Now, for once, her children can wait for her.