Salma Makes a Home by Danny Ramadan

Author:Danny Ramadan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Annick Press
Published: 2023-03-29T21:30:12+00:00

Chapter 8

Salma hears a soft knock on her bedroom door.

“Hey, Salma,” Baba says, “may I come in?”

Salma tightens the sheets around her and squeezes her fairy doll closer. She feels the weight of Baba as he sits on the edge of her mattress. He strokes her hair.

“Hey, I made you a cheese sandwich,” Baba says. “With strawberry jam.”

He holds out a dish with her favorite sandwich on it. She takes a bite. The melted cheese, warm and soft like caramel, feels good in her mouth.

“I heard you had a conversation with Mama,” Baba says softly.

“You don’t love it here,” Salma says. “I think you want to go back to Syria.”

Baba sighs then leans against the headboard. “It’s not that I don’t like it here, Salma. I just miss Damascus.”

“Why? This home is beautiful and new. We have a dishwasher and a beautiful balcony. We even have a little swing in the park,” Salma says.

“Yes. We have all of these things, and they are beautiful. But I need other things, too.”

“Exactly! And if you can’t get those other things here, you’ll leave us.” Salma feels the burn in her eyes again. “When you were away, I missed you so much. I missed your smile and the way you hold my hand. I missed your jokes and your pranks.”

This time, Salma lets her tears flow. She cries such big tears that they drop onto the plate. Her tears are hot like the lava of a volcano. Her throat now burns, too, and so do her ears. Baba puts the dish on Salma’s bedside table then squeezes her in his arms.

“I missed you, too, Salma,” Baba says. “I missed the smell of your hair, and your giggle, and the way you fell asleep in my arms while watching TV. Why do you think I worked so hard to join you here?”

“You did?” Salma says between her tears.

“Of course. We had to leave Syria and come here for a better life,” Baba says. “It took a lot of work to find a way here, and it was very sad to see you and Mama go while I had to stay in Damascus. I was lonely, and I worried about you a lot. Now that I am here, I would never leave you two again. No matter how hard it is.”

“Even when it’s cold?” Salma sniffles. “You won’t leave us for stupid Damascus?”

“I promise I will never ever leave you, Salma.” Baba has a smile on his face: an understanding one, like the one he has whenever Salma stumbles on a difficult math problem. Salma buries her face in her Baba’s chest again.

“Remember Damascus, Salma?” Baba says. “Remember that evening you and Mama came with me to an old café?”

“When you played backgammon with Jiddo?” Salma lifts her head up. She does remember when her parents took her to that historical café. The beautiful alleyways zigzagged like a maze, yellow and orange lanterns hanging from their walls.

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