Arab Woman Talking

Artemis was born from the union of the nature deity Leto and Zeus, the chief god of the Romans and the husband of Hera. It is said that Leto delivered Artemis without any labor pains. But after she came out, her mother started having birth pangs that lasted for days. In her womb was Apollo, Artemis' twin, waiting to emerge. Immediately after she was born, Artemis helped her mother deliver her brother. A midwife by nature. Later, she was known to come to women in labor to ease their pain, although at times she did that by ending their lives. At three years old, Artemis asked Zeus at Mt Olympus to grant her some gifts. A bow and arrow to hunt with, hunting dogs, and a short tunic instead of a restrictive long dress. She asked for the mountains and forests to be her playground and to be accompanied by beautiful nymphs. Like the moon, she wanted to bring light into the world, and she wanted to remain chaste, a virgin, uncontrolled by men, un-swerved by their love. Zeus said yes, and so...

There are some traditions that are worth upholding, but many have collected thick layers of dust so opaque that we can no longer see what was once beneath them. We mistake the dust for the essence, incessantly complaining about a'raf and wajibat, the rights and wrongs of our forefathers...but we play along to avoid ridicule and choose the chains of cowardice, prejudice, and misconception. Ignorance. I am not saying that all traditions are outdated and useless-far from it, in our Arab culture are jewels and treasures, and I am the first to call for preserving them. But let us stop for a moment and consider what we are heeding, rather than following blindly like grazing sheep. Sheep and goats: I am reminded of kindergarden and a song we learnt in school. The teacher would walk around the classroom singing: Ya Ganamati . And we'd respond: Ma Ma . ...Ghannou waraya : Ma Ma ..and so on and so forth. Very endearing, but also very telling. We grow up, Ma Ma-ing until we reach the gra...

A new consciousness is arising, I can see it everywhere. Individuals and groups transcending boundaries, meeting the other, reconciling with the 'enemy,' and finding shared humanity. Watching the news, one would think there was nothing but bombings and suicide attacks, hatred on all sides. But there is good news: seeds, children of peace, sulha, friends of the earth, and all nations (1), we just don't hear much about them. There are also people making babies together and others making art. There is beauty. "There can never be too many of us dreaming of peace"(2). We are stronger together. The Middle East is becoming increasingly polarized: the ultra conservative right and the fundamentalists are increasing in number and loudness. The globe is heating up, the oil is running out, and we are killing each other over it. Meanwhile, the river is becoming a creek. Take away all the oil, only water can quench my thirst. Black gold oozes from the dry crust. We argue over l...

Children went out to play during the three hours of ceasefire Israel announced in Gaza. Rushdi Abu Alouf reports for the BBC. It was the first time the children went outside of the building in 12 days. Psychiatrists fear that the children will never recover from their wounds. In Oakland, riots are breaking out in Downtown. People are out on the streets, setting cars ablaze and burning tires. They are protesting the killing of an unarmed black male by metro police on the first day of the New Year. There is much injustice and inequality in our world. The constitution says we are all equal, but the reality shows us otherwise. Where, when, and how did we lose sense of our humanity? How can we regain it? Psychological damage is caused by trauma inflicted on children during war, under oppression, and from the first moment they are born. It does not take a PhD to see the connection between trauma and violence, but it takes a dreamer to believe that the damage is not irreversible. It c...