Image by Ibrahim.ID, CC BY-SA 3.0 [edited].
Ramadan: In Memory and Imagination, by Julie Clark
In Memory
I call a few friends
Who used to live in China
To ask about Ramadan
What foods they shared
For Iftar
And what it meant
It was nutritious and delicious
Huge meals of soup,
rich and meaty main dishes and
Fresh and dried fruits and nuts
It meant
Love and connection
Solidarity
With family, friends and neighbors
I find it painful to ask
And painful for them to remember
Since they have left their homeland
Since the lockdown
Since the genocide of their people
They haven’t heard news
Of their families
For too long
They have not heard
Their voices or their laughter
Or words of hope
That this will end
And life could be normal
And they could celebrate
Ramadan again
With love and connection
Solidarity
With family, friends and neighbors
In Imagination
(When I lived in a city called Gulja, I remember hearing mothers calling their children to come home. They would sing their names out the doorways or open windows. The children would start making their way home when they heard their names.)
If only I could hear her voice again. She called me from the window, singing my name down the street. The sun had set. I knew it was time to come home and eat the delicious meal she prepared every night for us. I would skip home throwing open the door to find her in her apron serving the food to my father and brother. She would nudge me to the sink to wash my hands. My father would tussle my hair, my brother would give me a playful punch. We would eat our meal together, savoring the flavors and the love we had for each other.
In my dreams I hear her calling, singing my name down the street. I can never find my way home. There is always an ocean to cross or a gate I can’t get through or soldiers blocking my way.
*
