family

Matriarchal Lineage, Traced:

Matriarchal Lineage, Traced:

When I think of my name, I think of how easily it rolls off my lips and onto my tongue. I purse my mouth and let it sit there as it boils beneath the skin: Mariam. If you say it right, it’s magic. The Arabic of it all feels like home, like I never left Syria, like my grandma is still alive, rolling grape leaves as my other grandma kneads dough. My name smells like their kitchens, tastes like their kisses on my cheek. 

On Kids

On Kids

I never day dreamed about one day marrying the man I had been with since I was 15, moving to the country, and popping out six kids. Those thoughts literally never entered my head. The main thoughts in my head at the time were “Wait what?! That’s how much I owe the government for 4 years of private school education?” and “Where am I going to move so I don’t have to live in my hometown?”