My Shrine...

Layla Anwar, An Arab Woman Blues - Reflections in a sealed bottle...

...As a matter of fact, I remember all my departed ones, members of my family, my great grand parents, my ancestors...Everyone I have ever heard of, even those remotely related to me. Remembering them gives me a sense of continuity...A sense of belonging. And now that Iraq is in pieces, their rememberance is even more of a priority for me (...) Another thing that reminds me a lot of my departed ones is Sheikh al Gaylani(Gilani) mosque and shrine in downtown Baghdad. Sheikh AbdelKader Al Gilani was a sufi and a good number of my family followed his teachings. Some even say that we are related to him and can trace our roots right back to 13th century Baghdad through the Gaylani school. So when I heard that Al Gaylani mosque and shrine was bombed, something in me snapped.I felt it physically, something around my heart... What have you done? Not only have you smashed my country into tiny pieces. Not only have you slaughtered my people. Not only have you snatched my loved ones, my family, my friends, away from me. Not only have you destroyed our homes. Not only have you exiled thousands of us. But you have also managed to shatter my memories, pull them out from their roots, like some unwanted weed... continua / continued