Elias Sassoon

Sassoon's Heart Beatings:: the Collected Poetry of Elias Sassoon

There are fifteen chapters in this book of poetry. In each chapter there are appropriately 20 to 25 poems. The chapters topics include ones exploring self, humor, places I've been, early youth, relationships with my father and mother, one on ravings, another on death, and another on personalities from work, among others. Here are two poems from the book: OUTSIDE WALLED MONUMENT Looking from afar at the city of the limestone dreams. A city the cause of beauty, religion, the city taken by David, and the Romans, and the Turks, and the Arabs, and the Assyrians, and the Greeks, and the British and the last man on earth. A city, looking at the city from afar, from the new city. Jerusalem, the city, the old city with the old walls. Standing outside and looking in. Standing in the new part with the modern streets, the modern roads and hotels and shops and people. Jerusalem the new part, like any western city. Jerusalem the new part, looking in at the old part, looking at the wall, the old wall, the wall of the Turks. Look at the old gates, the Syrian Gates, the Gates of the Mount of Olives. See the Arab in full headdress emerge out of the old city. See the Jews emerge in full headdress into the old city. Looking on and wondering why. Looking on and never wanting to enter for fear. Looking on at the medieval world of being medieval. Strange place all right. A strange world all right. CHILD COUNTING Counting now. Today putting the digits together. One, two, three, four, six. No says the teacher, wrong says the teacher. One, three, four, five, six. No says the teacher, wrong says the teacher. One, two, four, five, six. Wrong again says the teacher. The boy looks at the teacher. The boy says to the teacher. It doesn't matter at all ever. The teacher looks at the boy. The teacher says. One, two, three, four, five, six. The close of another school day.