Lost in Translation (Teheran)m

January 21, 1980

Brother! Brother!m -- Yes! You! You with language that looks like embroidery, intricate, exquisite -- tell me, How can I reconcile what I am hearing with what I am seeing inscribed on those banners billowing over the embassy walls? For how could the voice of malevolence bitter, intransigent, bruising possibly find expression in forms of such beauty and grace? I look at the face of the child, smiling and waving his joy from his perch on your shoulder, And I cannot believe that what I am hearing can be what -- deep-down -- you truly are meaning my brother.