ZIAD IN GAZA

 On my mobile, I have a voice-activated “personal assistant”. Sometimes, I press on somethingby mistake and a screen appears, encouraging me to use this feature.

Today, the message was, “Try saying ‘sing me a lullaby’.”

Lying on the couch, I couldn’t stop thinking about that message: sing me a lullaby. Do people know what “lullaby” is being sung for the children of Gaza? Do they know the kinds of sounds they hear every night?

Do parents realise that while they are reading bedtime stories to their children, other parents, in a place called Gaza, are holding theirs close to their hearts and praying that nothing bad will happen?

I am 35 years old … and I miss my mother, I wish I could bury my face in her hands, and listen to her singing me a lullaby.