Metallic vectors from the north
Exchange old eyes for heavy purses
Fearsome young hopefuls drawn
Towards the neo-promised land
The blend of doubt and pride
Yields uncertainty at their door
The strands of time already blur
The lessons gone and those to come
Which way does the minaret face
Can Mecca still be seen through the Atlas peaks
Did the French and the Jews leave the Berber untouched
Can the Souk, the Medina, the Kasbah survive
The flux of microwave, Mercedes and jazz
The loss of the lifelines of their future
Muezzin and mobile, discordant, compete
The old lute is tethered to the amp
A purchase in the Souk consummated by card
Guides already the Euro demand
Clothes of Gucci or labelled Zinedine
Mask faded kaftan and dull djellaba
Marrakech, Morocco, March 2004
