Tag: damascus

by jad

Tonight’s the Night

“Decades where nothing happens and weeks where decades happen kind of feeling…” Completely. In a handful of words, a friend in Seattle sums up the whirlwind I’ve been caught in since Saturday, when I woke up to messages from a friend in Damascus asking me if I’m seeing the news. “Tonight’s the night ya Jad.” I took the first photo just after a gathering with a motley crew of democratic socialists where we argued about Syria among other things, and by the time I took the third photo sometime later, Damascus was surrounded. Once again, my friend and comrade in … Continue reading “Tonight’s the Night” →

by jad

Syria: 20 Weeks of Gratitude, Week 9

Part 1: The Citadel Al a’aqel zeena. “The mind is decoration”—or the mind is what makes one beautiful. I didn’t know it at the time, but those words on that shirt referencing a wartime radio play by the Lebanese artist I was about to see performing at the Damascus Citadel would perfectly summarize my sense of Syria for years to come. I’ve only ever had pleasant feelings in Syria, a place so close yet so distant, so foreign. I grew up in a country where you learned very quickly to stiffen up when a Syrian soldier was addressing you. My … Continue reading “Syria: 20 Weeks of Gratitude, Week 9” →