Black Pepper

when Nizar Qabbabi said, “I throw my passport in the sea, and name you my country. I throw all my dictionaries in the fire, and named you my language.” and when he said, “Give me a daughter with your stubborn heart, or your even temper. Give our children your dark-bright eyes, or your enchanted smile. So that even when we are gone, the world will find within them all of the reasons why I loved you.” and when he said, “Had I told the sea what I felt for you, it would have left its shores, its shells, its fish, and followed me.” and when he said

you are not a machine. you are more like a garden. you need different things on different days. a little sun today, a little less water tomorrow. you have fallow and fruitful seasons. it is not a design flaw. it is wiser than perpetual sameness. what does your garden need today?