Arab Woman Talking

Whisper. I will come closer to hear you Shout, and I will close my ears. Sing me the pain of generations The cry of the orphaned child ‘Mamaaaaa.’ Speak to me with your heart And I will be your human shield. إهمس لي ألمك لأقترب منك واسمع إصرخ – لأغلق أذناي. غني لي ألم أجيال  أسمعني بكاء  اليتيم – ماماااااااااا   كلمني من قلبك - وسأكن درعك البشري. 

May we be  Vessels of light Vehicles of peace May we see through the lies we've been fed Since the beginning of his-story Set up against one another The children of Abraham and the 'adoptees' At this point, it makes no difference  Arab - Hebrew Palestinian - Israeli Religious - Secular We are all bait Feeding the Big Fish What Exodus?  We are still enslaved The pharaohs of today transcend nationality and faith United under the flag of common interest and gains They pull the strings of puppet leaders and we do their bidding Brother Sister People of the land People on the land - no matter where you came from People off the land - no matter where you are I am not your enemy You are not mine Embrace your neighbour Fear not Love is the greatest weapon we can carry.

This is a war against our humanity Making us demonise the other Making us blind to our faults Justifying crime and revenge   Our humanity is at stake. We cringe at being called animals  Yet they are superior  They do not go against the will of their creator They do not commit genocide   Our humanity is at stake Our ability to see the other in ourselves Ourselves in the other Nursed on hate What a pity- we could have been raised on love   O, the cursed sons and daughters of Abraham Sacrificed over and over again  How could we have reached this point So far from what was promised So far from the light   The kingdom of heaven  What has it brought us Can it be built on spilt blood If we plant tomato seeds, we get tomatoes If we plant war, there can never be peace It’s a vicious cycle Look at the war on terror and the terror it’s brought Listen to the mothers mourning their children Listen and weep The kingdom of heaven… How about we make it queendom....

The US government had recently approved the use of a bee vaccine to combat foulbrood, The Guardian reports. They hail it as 'hope for a   new weapon   against diseases that   routinely ravage colonies   that are relied upon for   food   pollination.'  Alarm bells go out in my mind.  I call out to all beekeepers and lovers of bees - lovers of nature... in the United States to begin with because you're the testing ground and worldwide because it coming to us too ... that's what they'll want.... the pharma industry. Please ... do not let us meddle with the perfection of the bee. How she is created and born, as well as how she dies and the diseases that strike her.  They say a quarter of the hives had foulbrood last year and had to be burnt. That sucks, but you know what, it's also not a big deal. Last I heard, scientists were complaining about 'too many honey bees' and 'they’re not really native to America and are competing with the native and w...

Two cinnamon sticks dance a passionate duet. A choir of mixed colour pepper corals glide back and forth and around the cinnamon’s backs. The sticks form a valley. A new stage for two cloves to meet and butt crowns. A bay leaf floats towards the stage, like a curtain closing. It rests in the cleave between the cinnamon, pinning the cloves between leaf and wood. Four slices of ginger float on the periphery, like balconies in a theater.  Who’s watching...   The heat has been turned out.  The dancers slow down, their movements becoming more pronounced.  From a steamy frenzy to a ballet to Bhutto to stillness.  A tiny clove closes the act. Emerging from the hiding place beneath a ginger, swimming towards the bay leaf – rocking the island oh so gently.  Setting everything in motion once more.   A ginger breaks out from the others and becomes a cloud, two slices turn towards her like wings … a flower blooming under water.  A ginger arches above the dance...

My first  Mulch (reposted from website blog... trying to get things back on one blog....)  It is autumn. The crops in the front garden beds have been harvested and the exposed earth is already hosting a number of weeds. It’s time to prepare for the winter… it’s time to mulch.  If you’ve never heard of mulching, don’t worry, neither had I till a couple of months ago when I began my journey in the wonderful world of permaculture : A perfectly efficient system that strives to use the least amount of energy to produce the optimal yield, providing favorable conditions that allow nature do its work so that you can do less. Starting from the bottom up:  Everything begins with a good foundation, which in the garden means healthy soil. The soil on our land is very poor, and although I succeeded in producing an abundant harvest of fruits and vegetables this year, it’s been a lot of laborious watering and a constant stride against weeds and opportunistic plant...