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Today host Marcela Sulak reads some poems by Hava Pinhas-Cohen. An anthology of her selected poems, Bridging the Divide, has just appeared, with English translation by Sharon Hart-Green. Pinhas-Cohen was born in Israel into a family of Bulgarian Jewish immigrants who’d arrived after WWII. Here’s an extract from the poem “Only in the East”:

“Only in the East are two priestly hands a pyramid for your soul.
Only in the East do lions and deer stop in their tracks to hear the sounds of distant water.
There, in the East, the world has sides that are equal
and your soul will find its rest. There.”

Pinhas-Cohen has taught literature and writing in high school for many years, and has developed a special method of integrating literature, Bible, visual arts, and cinema. She is Editor-in-Chief of the Dimui journal, and a columnist for the daily newspaper Maariv. Her six collections of poetry have won many prizes, including the Prime Minister’s Prize.

Hava Pinhas-Cohen also founded and serves as the Artistic Director of Kisufim, a conference of Jewish writers that occurs every other year. It’s happening next week in Jerusalem, from November 23-27.

Text:
The Selected Poems of Hava Pinhas-Cohen: Bridging The Divide. Bilingual Edition. Edited and Translated by Sharon Hart-Green. Syracuse University Press, 2015.

Music:
Yifat Gelber – Shilkhi (words by Hava Pinhas-Cohen)
Ahuva Ozeri – Emek HaPrakhim
Tesha – Just A Beautiful Day On The Beach

Producer: Laragh Widdess
Technical producer: Alex Benish