Voices in the Forest 

All Empires Fall

Paramount Open Space 946 NE 147th Street Shoreline, WA 98155

Listen in English (SoundCloud) 

Listen in Somali (Sound Cloud; read by Amal Sheylila)

Gaze deeply enough and you’ll find solace
For the justice of nature crawls at a glacial pace
But make no mistake, it exists
When the tractor was constructed
Shoreline was under apartheid
And its durability was unquestioned
Now it’s no longer in working order
Immersed in a swamp, impaled by timber
Barring intervention, it’ll be there forever
Despite the close proximity of a golf course;
An aspect of elitist indulgence
This still became a victim of obsolescence
So on the outskirts of Seattle
Here lies a textbook example
Of how attempts at immortality are at best a gamble
Such are the life lessons
That can be found even in Shoreline’s woodlands
All empires fall – there are no exceptions …

Download the bilingual PDF, English-Somali (translation by Language Link)

A Sign of Civilization

Paramount Open Space 946 NE 147th Street Shoreline, WA 98155

Listen in English (Sound Cloud)

Listen in Somali (Sound Cloud, read by Amal Sheylila)

A sign of civilization
Amidst this vegetation
A friendly reminder
That services can still be rendered
Even on the farthest reaches
Of Shoreline's frontier
Alas, if you look closely
You'll notice how the foliage
Seemingly threatens
To eventually consume
Even this tiny indication
This small sign of civilization
And yet, it stands its ground nonetheless

Download the bilingual Somali-English PDF

A Part of What We Protect

North City Park 19201 10th Avenue NE Shoreline, WA 98155

Listen in English (Sound Cloud) 

Listen in Somali (Sound Cloud; read by Amal Sheylila)

If there ever was
A nuclear holocaust
This is what would be lost
Shoreline’s greenery; 
Its (non-poisonous) ivy
Even the occasional fallen tree
Hence the necessity for a pacifist hero
For if strife with our neighbors continues to grow
This wilderness would be ground zero
Let the divergent trails seen here
Symbolize our options, between peace and war
And remember, an elementary school ain’t far

Download the bilingual Somali-English PDF

Voices in the Forest