3 Poems by Ali Znaidi

The Olde Word

o word

thou art

stale

o word

thou hast

ailments

just soak

in a bath

of ale

In the Abyss of a Desert Mirage

Prickly pears in succulent stems,

make no bones about! You never

knew

the preciousness of water

until all water drops turned into

flakes flying in the mirage.

The Story with the Meat’s Smell

Does the grass tell stories?

wondered the grasshopper—

a barbecue

prepared in a grassy terrace

of a villa in the countryside.

Bionote

Ali Znaidi (b.1977) lives in Redeyef, Tunisia where he teaches English at Tunisian public secondary schools. His work has appeared in Otoliths, The Tower Journal, streetcake, Ink Sweat and Tears, Mad Swirl, Unlikely Stories: Episode IV, Red Fez, Carcinogenic Poetry, Stride Magazine, and other ezines. His debut poetry chapbook Experimental Ruminations was published in September 2012 by Fowlpox Press (Canada). He also writes flash fiction for the Six Sentence Social Network-http://sixsentences.ning.com/profile/AliZnaidi.