Muhaha,two men discussing that inner values are more important than looks,I can´t stop myself from laughing!
If there is anyone who rather looks at inner qualities (kindness,intelligence,humour,empathy,experience,creativity etc.) than it would rather be females,how else can you explain that so many young & pretty women fall for older guys? I know it´s a clichee but if you look around you will find out that most men are judging women mainly by standards of appearance. (Not all of them-of course,but for the vast majority it´s true.) That also (partly) explains why divorced men do get remarried more often than divorced women-simply because a woman who has had several pregnancies or a difficult marriage will not look as fresh and cute as she did when she was a 20-something innocent,naive young girl.
I do have a lot of girlfriends my age who are crazy about Alan Rickman or Javier Bardem,they find that men with character and edges are more interesting than "babyfaces".I have never heard a man say that he wants to have a girlfriend with grey hair and wrinkles that tell her lifestory. (Of course,there are exceptions to the rule,but it is scientifically proven that men are looking for women who seem fertile-young-healthy while women rather look for security-character & father qualities.)
The problem for us non-Arabic speakers is that his poems do not translate well into English. I think the problem stems from the fact the English language does not have as many descriptive words as Arabic so when they translate it, it comes out sounding strange.
I love this poem, but in English it almost sounds as if he is writing to a lover and not his mother. Especially phrases like this:
We would never use words like "burning" and "yearning" about our mothers because those words, when said to or about another person, are used to convey passion, romance or sexual desires. Of course, the other problem with the English language is that our words often have double meanings. For example, phrases like "my house is burning down" or "I am yearning to learn about Arabic culture" have nothing to do with love or romance. It can be very confusing unless someone explains the meaning behind it.
That´s right,coming from a similiar cultural background I understand what you mean. "burning and yearning" are very strong,passionate words that would work well in a romantic poem but I would never write it to my mum or anyone I am not romantically linked to.
Maybe I would write that I am missing her,or that I anticipate her with joy & happiness-something like that.
It´s true-the double meanings are quite tricky and sometimes you need to know colloqial language or local gossip/sayings to understand the fun in a pun or the important point in a poem.
Nabati poems also use that double-meanings (there is a musical instrument-oud-that also has a different meaning as well) just like Robert Frost does to either cleverly mislead the reader,challenge his intelligence or say things which are not politically correct or would not be said openly in the public.
I do not understand. Can someone explain to me????????
.... I'm joking!
This short poem is written for you by me today. Maybe it will make your day warm and bright!: 
(pls don´t take it serious, I know there are a lot of differences between people with the same nationality and origin). 
I have no what he's saying but it sounds lovely.
