How shelter-in-place inspired us to create
The Beekeeper of Aleppo, a painful and powerful story of survival, inspired this work, says Selma when we discuss her creativity during shelter-in-place.
She continues, I’ve been to Syria, Poland, Russia , all through the books I’ve read, many more than if I hadn’t been stuck at home. Olga—I can call her that now I’ve read her books—has made me want to visit Poland when the world opens up.

Selma and I were asked this question by Imrana on Inspire FM Luton: ‘Miracle of Hope’ seems like a perfect during this pandemic – has lockdown had any particular impact on your work? And do you have any advice for people who have found it difficult to write during this time?”
To counter the trauma of COVID and the impact it has had on the millions worldwide, we have made an effort to appreciate being able to reflect and create. We realize that for many it is difficult to find the time or the space in your mind to do that. And that is how technology has been such a savior.
Reaching out to others
We have reached out to each other in a way we would not have imagined otherwise. We created this blog. Friends from our past, from decades past have joined us. Bushra’s piece reminded us of the tragedy of persecution and Mahwash took us to Diamond Moods.
I have entered libraries where I lived as a young woman and I’ve got to appreciate the women that keep me going today.
Creating in Confinement
In confinement, writers and poets have documented their deepest thoughts, sometimes called captivity narratives. Here are works written in confinement and we know you’ll have more to share
- Dast-e Saba and Zindan Namah by Faiz Ahmad Faiz
- Don-Quixote by Cervantes
- The Mauritanian (originally published as Guantánamo Diary) by Mohamedou Ould Slahi
And lastly in a San Francisco Grotto Class, Pushing the Boundaries with Jenny Bitner, I wrote this poem:
Memory Remembers itself Each Otherwise forgotten time forgoing its fate to go forward Oblivious to the future it lives Reliving the past to return to the moment it began to be Resurrected into the being Of when it began as memory
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