Days Gone By
by Fatima
This post was written by Fatima for her blog “Thoughts From Baghdad” and cross-posted to the Olivebranch Network.
Bilal and my oldest the night before we left Baghdad. December 2006.
My husband is here from Baghdad for a short visit. We spend a lot of time at his parents house with his cousin ‘A’ who is also here from Baghdad and attempting to move on with his life. A is mashaAllah in good spirits. Not only is he laughing but most importantly he is making all of us around him laugh. He’s brought a beautiful touch of Baghdad back here with him.
We sit with him listening to his stories of Baghdad and reminisce with him. He mentions his brother, Bilal, Allah yirhamuh, often; when we’re eating, taking pictures or playing. He shows us old videos and photos. I realize how everything reminds him of his brother and of his home but I’m impressed by his ability to stay strong and cheerful, and by his ability to make everyone around him smile and laugh. I see when he has his dark moments but he does manage to move on. May Allah keep him strong and cheerful always.
The other day we were sitting and he was going through his wedding pictures. A day of celebration, smiles and happiness. Flipping through those pictures was like looking at a summary of Baghdad today. ‘A’ pointed at the people in his pictures, “This one was killed, this one left the country, and this one, May God grant him freedom, was taken”. Three quarters of the people in his photos had left Baghdad, been killed or were kidnapped by one force or another. And these pictures were from less than three years ago.
In such a short period of time, life has changed so much for these people. SubhanaAllah, if I knew the future, I would do so much good.