By the Lake

Sitting at my door,

my departing soul,

aching once more,

I long for you all.

I long for your laughs, your giggles,

the fights, the lunches,

hot and cold nights,

sunrise and rain.

I hope never to depart again

sadness doesn’t run in your veins.

I long for Thamesmead Lake,

where the ducks, swans, and doves

became our dear friends,

small hands feeding bread,

graffiti bright on the walls,

feet dancing and spinning

in a frenzy of basketball.

I long for it all

myself as light as a cloud,

water everywhere breaking walls.

Not departed, but remained.

In every drop,

It’s me again!

My boat swings and sways,

the slide carries me away,

the tide draws me near.

You are my way, my deer.

I’m always near you,

my heart stays,

even when I’m far away.

By Najat Alshafie

8/8/2025

Drawing “A lake in a sunny day” by Najat Alshafie

Without Words

I read your lips before you speak

I read your mind before you think

I read your words before you write

Then I fall in love once more 

as if life is endless

as if spring lasts and autumn never comes.

My heart and soul read with words

and without, far and beyond

as if you were writing just to me

as if it is a magical spell

I surrender every time to you.

What power do words have?

Language is a secret that lovers cover to uncover.

Written by Najat Alshafie

Painting by Najat Alshafie

A 1000 Questions

Poem: A 1000 Questions By: Najat Alshafie

A 1000 questions

and more

lingering in my head

trembling like sea waves

not settling on the shore.

Are daydreams bitter or sweet?

Are years of yearning sad or mad?

Are watches watching our sorrows?

Are you a fantasy or true?

I keep wondering and wandering;

why a lamp post shimmers in a deserted street;

why the shades of loved ones have faded;

why there is so much pain;

why mortals struggle in vain;

why your soul is in a chain;

why loneliness is your haven when you are born;

why broken hearts ache and are deeply torn';

why all the kisses melt apart';

why the sofa in my bedroom is weeping and the curtain leaping;

why the door is wide open and no nock,

a glimpse of luck or a tweeting clock;

why life ends when it has just begun;

why time fades as a dimming light;

why and why until the end of time?

O, Plato!

Come once again!

Please don’t leave me

with a 1000 questions

haunting me

Unanswered!

Poem and artwork by Najat Alshafie

30/3/2024

Glued Eyes

I glued my eyes until darkness,

not to see you, my beloved.

A phantom of a woman with crimson hands,

departing alone to deserted lands.

I can’t see all the destruction,

that ripped your beautiful face.

I can’t stand the cries of weeping mosques and churches.

I can’t hear the loud sighs of tormented children.

I can’t touch your broken heart.

I can’t feel your fading pulse.

I can’t weep anymore.

I’m frozen in the moment of departure.

You are mesmerised in my glued eyes.

I will dream of you every morning,

but with holes, a lot of holes in my heart.

Holes where the lost ones have once been.

My tears are still burning my soul.

Death in walking distance.

I know my footprints will be haunting me forever,

until I step on them once again.

I shall return with more olive trees in my hands,

bird seeds under my wing,

to revive all the slaughtered pigeons.

I shall behold my dreams, my beloved one.

I will drown our memories in the bottom of my heart.

Then wear a mask of silence,

cry for ages,

before the craws creep in silence

and steal them away.

I sing you love stories,

when you wake up, my sunshine,

when we are indulged in the river of passion,

all guilty and sinned,

seeking forbidden dreams.

Poem written by Najat Alshafie in honour of Heba Zagout.

*Art work by Heba Zagout, the 39-year-old Palestinian artist who was killed with her children by Israelis in an air strike in October 2023.

https://www.gqmiddleeast.com/culture/heba-zagout-artist-peace-in-gaza

Black & White

I am half half

black & white.

sometimes I say

my mother is a black knight flying a kite

my father is a white kite flying at night

sometimes I say

my mother is a white kite flying at night

my father is black as a knight flying a kite

I am a mixed race,

so, it does NOT matter who is a black & who is white!

which side of the moon is dark & which side is bright!

I am the 2 sides in a shiny night full of stars.

I keep the secrets hidden in my eyes

throne under my colored skin that never dies

pebbles obstructing my throat

signs on my face, hands & feet

hangers of my coat in the street

ME ME ME is my beat

black & white!

Writing and drawing: Najat Alshafie

Shrouded Gardenias

Two gardenias arm in arm

Stubborn as a mule

Defy adversity of barren seasons and Northern winds 

Stretch to live in a peaceful land

Spread their delicious scent miles away

Passionate to thrive

Blossom in a midsummer night

Awakened memories of innocent childhood 

Climbing tall trees of happiness 

Planting seeds of joyfulness in the shades of awaited dreams

Shrouded white gardenias embedded in a garden in my book.

Weary Heart

O' weary sensations

that triggered unforgettable feelings

A solitude awakened lingering memories

Nothing crept in an immortal silence

but the ashes of fading faces and voices.

My heart captivated in a golden cage

waxy wings of aspirations melted at sunrise

That warm touch penetrated my skin

revived every detail buried under the feathers.

So tiny became my world of words

invisible shadows invaded my secret garden

Every second away from you

dark ages weeping destiny.

Far away in a vast desert

I shattered to a million pieces

O' wonderland save me from

remembrance that embraces

my monotonous nights.

Poem & artwork

Najat Alshafie

March 1st 2011