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cecilia mcdowall - everyday wonders: the girl from aleppo كلمات الأغنية

1. orphans of the world

chorale
this wreath of words is what we have
and flowers of song all we can give
singing sorrow but singing tomorrow
singing the song of life itself

nujeen. nujeen
new life. that’s me!
but i can’t walk, can’t balance
my two legs have lives of their own
plaster, braces, operations
i’m stuck forever on tiptoes
i often dream about being an astronaut
floating in sp-ce, your legs don’t matter

the scent of rosewater, hookah pipes
pistachios. that’s how aleppo used to be

dust, rubble. every window broken
aleppo, aleppo… like a ghost town

we kurds: orphans of the world
my mother, father, my siblings
all ten of us in three rooms
tv was my school, tv was my friend. i learned
soap-opera english by watching tv
sh-lling, looting, hammering, bombing
we knew we had to leave
just me, my sister nasrine, and my wheelchair
sometimes sisters can be as sweet as birds

chorale
remember me? remember
i’m not a baby, not a girl, not a boy
i’m just a number, an obstacle
i’m on the wrong side
remember. remember me?

2. thousands milling at the border (the journey)

thousands milling at the border. suitcases
bundles. refugees-nothing!
we sold heirlooms. family homes
one man said he sold his kidney
we raised money to buy life jackets
a place on a dinghy, freedom

3. i had never seen the sea before

i had never seen the sea before
the mist, the spray. how beautiful it is!
our phones we tied inside party balloons
to keep them dry on the crossing
of course i can’t swim. i’ve never been in water
none of us could swim. i became poseidon
that dove pebble a little afghan boy
gave me: i held it for luck between my awkward fingers

4. a lost tribe pushed from border to border

a lost tribe pushed from border to border
stampeding for a bus, swarming across fields
in the camps children drew pictures
with coloured pencils: a flower bright as blood
the guards lobbed food at us–lawyers, doctors
professors, businessmen. we are not animals
the jerking, the jolting, the pain, the pain
and nasrine always pushing, pushing
greece, macedonia, serbia, hungary
croatia, slovenia, austria …
‘please, germany? where is germany?’
the policeman smiled
‘willkommen! welcome to germany!’

5. everyday wonders

my head, my heart. skipping and singing
what delights me are everyday wonders:
people talking to me because i’m smiling
my head, my heart. skipping and singing
happy frogs croaking, summer rain falling
even the ducks seemed to welcome me
a chance to brush my t–th in the morning
everything on time, all the strict rules
waking early, my first ever morning at school
my pink and blue rucksack, red subject folders
sometimes in my dreams i make friends …
the animals at the zoo, some are weird
as i am. a smiling refugee. am i an alien?
laugh as long as you breathe. love as long as you live
these are my favourite sayings
my head, my heart. skipping and singing
nujeen. nujeen, new life. that’s me

chorale
this wreath of words is our choice
these flowers of song, they are our voice
snging sorrow, singing tomorrow, singing tomorrow
singing the song of life itself

- cecilia mcdowall

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