Reckoning with War
Dear Friends of Saint Louis Mindfulness Sangha, The first of the five wonderful mindfulness trainings emphasizes cultivating reverence for life. The original version of the 12th precept of the Order of Interbeing reads: “Do not…
Category: Middle East
Remembering and Forgetting
1. The struggle of man against power is the struggle of memory against forgetting. –Milan Kundera, Czech/French novelist 2. The Jews of my city are now forgotten, erased from its memory. Before, there were some…
They Were Soldiers: Invitation to a Reading Circle
After two Share the Wealth evenings on soldiers’ stories, we invite you to join us in a discussion of journalist Ann Jones’ book, They Were Soldiers: How the Wounded Return from America’s Wars–The Untold Story. We will…
Share the Wealth: An Accidental Activist, with Sarah Kuziez
This coming Sunday 26 January, I invite you to join us to be with Sarah Kuziez, a 2013 graduate of Maryville University. Having been inspired by Sarah’s passion, spirit, and resourcefulness, I encouraged her to…
In Praise of Fairuz
While on my walk The soft, tender voice of Fairuz was borne to me on the breeze As if coming from an ethereal howdah: “One day we shall return to our neighborhood….” Fairuz’s voice, in…
On Segev’s The 7th Million: The Israelis and the Holocaust
The following is a short summary and commonplace passages with comments on Tom Segev’s book, The 7th Million: The Israelis and the Holocaust. It’s one of the many books I examined when writing my first…
Dear Mark
Dear Mark, Here is my reflection of Dear Layla, I thought at first that I should apologize for the scatter-brained style of writing I’m sure this letter will take. Then I thought, he probably doesn’t…
This Palestinian Life
Mounif is calling me In America From Qatar About Fahim’s martyrdom In Beirut And burial In Kuwait And about the necessity Of informing Sitti Umm ‘Ata In Deir Ghassanah And his maternal grandmother In Nablus…
My Beloved Syria, My Beloved Alawi Friends: A Presentation by Steve Tamari
For our next gathering of Share the Wealth, on Sunday 7 October, Steve Tamari will briefly explain the context for the civil war in Syria and share why sectarianism is a reality but not the…
Arab Writers in Translation Reading Group for August
On Wednesday 22 August, we will discuss Iraqi novelist Mahmoud Saeed’s short 2004 work, Saddam City.* We meet on the 4th Wednesday of the even-numbered months at the Center for Survivors of Torture and War…