April is National Poetry Month and UPA is delighted to continue our Monthly Poetry Collection, curated by Palestinian-American poet and UPA supporter Zeina Azzam! On the first Tuesday of each month throughout 2021, a poem related to Palestine will be posted on our blog and social media pages. 

For the month of April, we feature Naomi Shihab Nye’s “The Words Under the Words.” 

Grandparents and their wisdom connect generations of families in profound ways. Naomi Shihab Nye’s late grandmother, Sitti Khadra, was a pivotal force in her life and was a deeply meaningful connection to Palestine for the poet. “The Words Under the Words” expresses the vast knowledge that Sitti Khadra possessed, which she gained through experience and intuition, love and longing, and devotion to God. “My grandmother’s eyes say Allah is everywhere … He is her first thought,” writes Nye. Spirituality punctuates her everyday life. In the same way, during this blessed month of Ramadan, Muslims fast and pray, practice kindness, invoke God’s blessings in words and deeds. We all try to find and understand the words under the words, like Naomi Shihab Nye’s Sitti, as we navigate our lives and search for meaning.  

With a Palestinian father and an American mother, Naomi Shihab Nye grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, Jerusalem, and San Antonio, Texas, where she resides today. Nye has published books of poetry, novels, essays, anthologies, and children’s books. She is currently the Poetry Foundation’s Young People’s Poet Laureate.   

Click here to read the complete poem! 

About Zeina Azzam  

Zeina Azzam is a Palestinian American poet, writer, editor, and community activist. Her poems are published widely in literary journals, anthologies, and edited volumes. Zeina’s chapbook, Bayna Bayna, In-Between, will be released by The Poetry Box in May 2021. She holds an M.A. in Arabic literature from Georgetown University.