Rulers like no others
Rulers like no others
By Tarif Youssef Agha
History has informed us about rulers
Of all kinds and colors
Some of them were wise, scholars, invaders or conquerors
Some owned a lot of property; others possessed a lot of morals
Some were inspired commanders and immortal leaders
Presidents, Kings and sultans to die for
This one was called the light of sun and the face of moon
And that one was called the pride of pride and the knight of knights
History informed us a lot about so many of them
But it never recalled anyone like some Arab rulers
As each one of those is everything we mentioned and more
He is a phenomenon that can’t be repeated in all times
As he is also an engineer, a doctor, a scientist and a teacher
He is the father of all, and also the brother, the comrade and the human
He is the pilot, the paratrooper and the tough struggler
He is the general who puzzled both, humans and genies
He is the one who was sent by God when we asked for help
The builder of the arc and our savior from the flood
He is the shrewd politician and the experienced diplomat
And the faithful, who distributes faith by tons
He deserves to be the president of the whole world
As everywhere he goes, he is pointed to by fingers
In brief, he is one of a kind
The greatest ever of his time and all times!
***
Wait a minute; the gifts of our rulers are not over yet
The job of every one of them and that of a clown is the same
He is also a human-trafficker who sees people as nobody but slaves
And a trader who sells honor for the cheapest rates
A carpenter who is great in sharpening impales
A miller who grinds his people and his country
A grouter who thinks that his throne is a tile that could never be removed
A butcher who thinks that his people are to be sacrificed
A painter whose favorite paint is blood
He also can perform circumcision and can play the thimble (the shell game)
He owns a funeral house and a grave yard
And he is a cattle man by nature
But he is also known in the world of nature
He likes darkness as bats and flies with crows
He sounds like owls and compete with frogs in crocking
He brays (like a donkey), hisses (like a snake) and barks like a rabid dog
He accompanies hyenas and eats with locusts
Brags as a peacock and slithers as a serpent
Runs away from the battle-field as a ostrich
And knows the mazes of the sewer as rats
Wait a second; the list of gifts is not over yet
We still have two verses in our rulers’ poem
They can some times be used as a veterinary plaster
And as castor-oil and a lot of other unbelievable uses
But also, they can be used as a toilet paper
Not some times, but all the time
***
Poetry by: Tarif Youssef-Agha
An Expatriate Arab Syrian Writer & poet
Houston, Texas
Friday December 2, 2011