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THURSDAY THE 8TH TO
SUNDAY THE 11TH
It was a nice
Thursday dawn, the sky was clear and the weather
clement. Twelve Meems awoke next to bags of clothes.
Some were sleeping in their own beds while others were
sleeping on couches, because they went through a long
trip passing through dangerous roads to get to the
Womyn’s House on time. Another Meem had to fake a heart
attack so the armed militias wouldn’t stop her! Waking
up at 4 in the morning was difficult, but we made it.
Even our coordinator who usually wakes up at 4 in the
afternoon managed to wake up early enough to make it on
time; she probably didn’t even sleep in the first place.
Although our mothers pleaded with us to stay home,
telling us that it was too dangerous to travel because
the country had broken out into a civil war, eleven out
of twelve girls made it to the departure point that
morning.
That was the
beginning of the 11 Meems’ journey to meet with 14 Arab
lesbians in Amman. In spite of all the difficulties, we
made it, and were the first ones to arrive at the hotel.
It was also the beginning of a trip that overwhelmingly
changed our lives, both in good and bad ways. The Amman
trip was supposed to be a way for Arab lesbians to
cooperate and help create a better future, a future
where lesbian women exist, actually, where WOMEN exist.
Eventually, this
trip became a self-exploratory trip; many Meems came to
discover how great, intelligent, and “salbé” they are.
It helped us realize what a caring and supportive
community we have. Every day, there would be one girl
hysterically harassing Meem’s phone line in order to
contact her parents, but there would also be 10 girls
surrounding and comforting her; telling her that it’s
going to be ok. Every night, after arriving back to the
hotel from an exhausting discussion session, 11 girls
were pinned to the TV to watch our Lebanon burning, but
every night, those 11 girls sat together and talked
about everything and anything.
On the way back,
and after 10 hours in the bus, we finally saw the
Lebanese borders as well as some Lebanese soldiers.
Three more hours and we were back where we started: next
to the Womyn’s House. We were back to a home where even
silence meant war, but we were home.
So, on behalf of Meem, we say thank you:
…to our coordinator who (literally) went crazy trying to
keep us safe and secure.
…to each one of the 11 Meems for being part of such an
amazing group of friends and activists.
…to each one of the 209 Meems who worried about us, even
though they were in greater danger.
…to Amman for hosting us when even our own home
couldn’t.
…to every Arab Lesbian who was courageous enough to be
there and share her stories and experiences with us. |
