Souadtahan

“You asked me if you could see colours again, Salama. If we deserve to see them. I think we do. I think you can. There's too little of it in death. In pain. But that's not the only thing in the world. That's not all that Syria has. Syria was once the center of the world. Inventions and discoveries were made here; they built the world. Our history is in the Al-Zahrawi Palace, in our mosques, in our earth”
― Zoulfa Katouh, As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow

“Just on the other side, safety- not freedom. I'm leaving freedom behind, and I can feel the earth's grief when I get out of the car. The tired weeds try to encircle my ankles. begging me to stay. They murmur stories about my ancestors. The ones who stood right where I stand. The ones whose discoveries and civilization encompassed the whole world. The one whose blood runs through my veins. My footprints sink deep into the soil where theirs have long since been washed away. They plead with me: It's your country. This earth belongs to me and my children.”
― Zoulfa Katouh, As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow

“Empires have collapsed throughout history. They rise, they build, and they fall. Nothing lasts forever. Not even our pain.”
― Zoulfa Katouh, As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow

“It reminds me that as long as the lemon trees grow, hope will never die.”
― Zoulfa Katouh, As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow