Death!

My constant companion who neverleaves...!

I first met him when I was stillon the cusp of a truncated childhood that had not had its fair share of life. Iopened my windows to my grandmother's astonished eyes raised to the sky. When Ilooked up, I saw clouds forming with tears before they cried.

But her face, which the years hadgnarled, was calm as I had never seen it before. I sat next to her in silenceon the roof of our large house and held her wooden hands, contemplating them.When my father saw me, he came slowly, trembling. He sat next to her and weptsilently as I had never seen him before. I didn't know why he called her withsuch pain when she was right next to him. I saw him carry her, descend the longstairs, enter her room, place her on her bed, and embrace her head.

In the evening, he took her withmy uncles who came from all over, and they buried her together in the ground. Iheard my non-blood aunt whisper a macabre wish, that the worms would rise fromthe earth to feast on my grandmother's burial. My mother scolded her and wept,but my father took out his bloodshot eyes and I never saw her again that day.

In the evening, I thought aboutmy grandmother, who was left in the darkness far away in a green wooden boxthat was brought from the neighboring mosque. Yesterday, she slept in theadjacent room, and I heard her calling her childhood friends all night long. Ihear her crying. I hear my father comforting her, I hear her wailing and mymother's lamenting. Then I hear my father's thundering voice suddenly turninginto a soft, tender voice telling her events of a distant day when he was atschool, as if they were events of that day.

Her muffled voice calling Aisha,her childhood friend, echoed in my head, and I couldn't sleep - as usual -because of the noise. I struggled to understand that my grandmother wouldn't bein her usual spot by the balcony, gazing at the sky and twirling her rosary. Myfather claims she ascended to the heavens, but how could that be when we buriedher in the earth?

This memory lingered in myimagination for a long time. I imagined death as a ladder, ascending from theearth to heaven. Then, I realized that we love to lift our tragedies skywardand worship our sorrows. I came to realize that death arrives when we've lostour ability to refuse. Death brings an end to our lengthy existence and leavesus alone in the dark to accompany the earthworms. Death does not need reasons.My grandmother's body was as healthy as a rock. Her clothes were clean as avirgin in her coffin, but her mind had only departed to the past long ago.

This was my first encounter with death.

A meeting filled with astonishment and maturity.

I came to realize that death arrives when we've lost ourability to refuse, and I lost that ability long ago.

I run away every time I accidentally come across it, whetherin the face of a loved one, an elderly person, or someone on their deathbed. Itry to press a button in my head to block out memories and kill the questions.But every time I run away; it attacks me in my dreams. It comes to me in the samepanoramic vision, and I wake up trembling, ready to cry for no reason.

And today, I meet it again.

Today, my closest friend Khalid was found dead in his prisoncell.

x