Song of Exile

Jeanne Benguigui

1963

Foreign to me are trees in bloom
And grass and air and sky
What storms have banished me
From Eden
What blazing fire from the sun
Your wind won’t dry these tears
Land of exile
Your rain won’t radiate my soul
Land of exile
Slanting rain of hatred
Acid rain of exile
Guardians caught in the trap
Your foolish willow trees weep
Your mawkish poplar…
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Creator Bio

Jeanne Benguigui

1931–2011

Jeanne Benguigui was born and raised in Sidi-Bel-Abbès, Algeria. A teacher by profession, she published her first book of poetry, L’Arbre de vie, in 1958 while living in Belgium, where she was recovering from tuberculosis. Benguigui spent much of her life in Vaires sur Marne, France, publishing more than twenty volumes of poetry. She received numerous prizes for her literary work, including for her collection of stories and legends about her birthplace, Contes de Sidi-Bel-Abbès, published in 1992.

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