a lovely dinner with guests from palestine, saudi arabia and iraq. i can never get over the warmth of our people, us the global south, the “muslim world.” all i can tell u is that there’s this ability to connect without hesitation, a closeness that’s v human and refreshing. and the stereotypes? bashayer, the young woman from saudi arabia, only 23 years old, but full of ambition and very much her own woman: “i’d rather die than be married to someone i don’t like.” ashwaq, a young teacher from palestine, full of resilience and hope: “come to israel, i’ll join u from gaza so we can meet up.” hasanain from iraq, who knows a lot about the world – even the flag lowering ceremony at the wagah border between pakistan and india. such beautiful people, all of them. if only we were all allowed to live our lives freely and be in control of our own destinies.
