Tebtasim

The title means "you smile." A short Gulf-flavoured song of a man whose love was seen coming but has gone far. I saw faces smiling and felt love was coming, but the days went long and you are far away. May God keep you, he says, may He keep you as joy for the world. The second part is a meditation on the people who sing and weep at once: those who sing, those who cry, faces that are empty, people who are fleeing, people who betray, people who cry and sing, and smile through regret.