Standing in solidarity – Trials & Tribulations

When home becomes battlefield

Sadaqa — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 19:14:15 +0000

She carries her youngest child against her hip, the older one gripping her hand with fingers that won’t let go. Behind them, the sound of shelling grows fainter but never quite disappears. Ahead lies the river: swollen with monsoon rain, moving fast enough to sweep away anyone who loses their footing. Her abaya is already heavy with mud from the journey so far. The water will make it heavier still.

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A better kind of empathy

Sadaqa — Sat, 29 Jul 2023 09:18:00 +0000

There is a difference between knowing and understanding. You can know that refugees cross rivers whilst fleeing violence. You can know they walk for days without adequate food. You can know their clothing becomes heavy with mud and water, making each step harder than the last. You can know all of this intellectually whilst it remains abstract, distant, something that happens to other people in…

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The weight of everyday cloth

Sadaqa — Fri, 01 Apr 2022 13:03:52 +0000

“That doesn’t sound very practical,” someone says, watching preparations for Trials & Tribulations — sisters adjusting abayas, ensuring hijabs are secure, checking that modest dress will hold against wind and obstacle and the hungry pull of mud. The observation is accurate. It is also beside the point. Practicality is the privilege of those who have time to plan, resources to prepare…

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When disaster strikes

Sadaqa — Sun, 12 Apr 2020 19:37:22 +0000

The monsoon rains arrive with a roar that drowns out prayer. Within hours, the water has claimed the ground floor, then the second storey, then everything. There is no time to gather possessions, only to grab children and flee — wading through currents that pull at your legs, your dupatta becoming a sodden weight that threatens to drag you under, mud sucking at your feet with each desperate step…

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