It felt weird leaving an abysmal Sidney Sheldon mini-series atop the blog for the weekend, so let me instead outro with a brief poem from the latest issue of Granta—one of the publication’s best in recent memory. It is by the Peshawar-based writer Hasina Gul, and translated from Pashto:
We grow up
but do not comprehend life.
We think life is just the passing of time.
The fact is,
life is one thing,
and time something else.
Words to chew over this weekend, as we temporarily assume whole new identities. (I’m gonna be Darth Vader; Microkhan Jr. is gonna be Spider-Man.)
(Image via Izzet Keribar)
jackal // Nov 3, 2010 at 2:32 am
A late note here — but that really is a fantastic issue of Granta. In addition to the poem, really loved the Saadat Hasan Manto story. Truly a master of the form. Toba Tek Singh still ranks as one of my all-time favorites
Brendan I. Koerner // Nov 3, 2010 at 8:58 am
Yeah, this was the rare issue in which I didn’t skip a single piece. I also really liked Declan Walsh’s dispatch from Pakistan, as well as the one about Pakistani pop. Highly recommended for anyone with even a passing interest in that part of the world.