Where are you from, from?
where are you from?
I’m asked by curious bystanders of my life
In my mind I’m quick to say England
British
Lived here all my life
Attended their schools and went through their educating systems, have I not?
Learnt about their treacherous colonisation of the world
Lived through their ongoing terrible Tory government
Embraced their stolen cultures of the cuppa and fish’n’chip Friday
Disguised myself with their language and dialects
But quickly I’m met with another question,
No, where are you from, from?
I breathe in and think ‘here we go again’
having repeated this answer multiple times to many curious bystanders that come
and go
Libya (ليبيا)
Pure Libyan blood runs through my veins
Behind my face lies a forgotten nation that can only be identified by its questionable
Ex-leader and its decade long civil war
Behind my blood lies a culture and history which withstood the tests of time
The lion of the desert, Omar al-Mukhtar
An islamic scholar turned freedom fighter
He who died a martyr leading the anti-colonial resistance in Cyrenaica
Behind my eyes lies the beautiful scenes of Libya
Aquamarine waters engulf its coastlines
Roman ruins of Leptis Magna and Sabratha, history coming back to life within a
Blink of an eye
Behind my nose lies the smells of Tripoli’s streets
Fresh bread and sfinz fills the bakery’s every morning
Quickly followed by queues of people determined to get their share of the carb
Goodness
Behind my tongue lies the sweetness of the cuisine
From fresh cold strawberry and kiwi juice
To the tooth achingly sweet rossata and abambar
By Hanna Elkaram
*Sfinz - a spongey fried bread, normally eaten for breakfast and either topped with sweet toppings such as date syrup, honey, Nutella or savoury toppings such as cheese, harissa, tuna or egg
**Rossata - a sweet almond drink which is normally served during special occasions such as baby showers and weddings
***Abambar - a soft almond cookie which has a similar softness to macaroons; these are always served along side rossata