Friday, December 07, 2007

~The Islands of the Moon~


~The Islands of the Moon~

This is not a travel journal
And I'm not a travel journalist
I'm simply a woman
Who is all exploring
In actual I stand so far away
In what it seem pebbles of Indian Ocean
I came to find the remaining of my soul
Buried in the womb of a soil
In the Islands of Comoro
Peeled out my sorrows
Many emotions erupted with years
Frozen lava became an island interface
Listen to the rhythm of Ngazidja
The Islands of the Moon

Copyright 2007, Nasra Al Adawi


What do I remember of Comoro Islands, I recall that my dad was so proud of being Zanzibarian with roots of Mgazija (meaning Comorian) and he will be talking about the lands in the Comoro Island where his father had left him I suppose. The first time I had set foot in Comoro Islands, I was a teenager but till now I recall the scene of the road which was constructed on frozen lava. Clearly it was evidence that the island at one time had perhaps tremendous volcanic activities. It was so amazing how the dark lava created a silence rhythm. The Islands of the Moon is how it is called in Arabic (Juzr Al Qamar), I like how it sound, exotic feel. I recall the people of there; the surrounding feel had a mixture of French and Arabic Culture and of course Comorian Style. I was so amazed that many spoke proper Arabic; indeed they conversed in Arabic Fus-ha (meaning they did not speak colloquial Arabic). I also recall growing up in Dubai, that the most valuable gifts receiving from those who visited from Comoro Island is the vanilla stick, the aroma of vanilla was fresh and sense tantalizing. I'm really missing that …

This following link gives a bit of history and tales about Comoro Islands

http://www.comores-online.com/mwezinet/histoire/islandsofthemoon.htm

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12 Comments:

Blogger Janice Thomson said...

It was fascinating traveling to these Islands with you Nasra through your narrative as well as your lovely poem What a delight it must be to go back to your roots now and then and be in touch with all that is a part of who you are. The link was informative as well.

7:54 AM  
Blogger Alok said...

Janice said it all for me ... truly an enjoyable read

Alok

12:16 PM  
Blogger floots said...

i think we are all explorers
(or should be)
well said nasra
thank you

1:10 AM  
Blogger eric1313 said...

I really like how you accompany everything with poetry. This is beautiful, and the poem is like an island, the wind blowing in off the warm ocean, the waves rippling, always trying to find a balance, sometimes looking like glass, like molten gold as the sun passes lower until the night brings its three thousand stars to meet us.

Beautiful work, my friend.

12:09 PM  
Blogger Don Iannone, D.Div., Ph.D. said...

Good one, Nasra. Enjoyed.

4:49 PM  
Blogger Kai said...

beautiful as always!

5:12 PM  
Blogger magiceye said...

fascinating indeed...

thank you for your concern Nasra. am well but not able to find enough time to visit all the lovely posts...

thank you so much.

10:01 PM  
Blogger All-Mi-T [Thought Crime] Rawdawgbuffalo said...

u write well, u are a poet and not a ana be. do visit me on day

7:55 AM  
Blogger Paul said...

Interesting! And I never thought about that - fresh vanilla. It's amazing the difference freshness makes in food. When I was teaching ESL I remember a twelve year old girl from a small village in China telling me how much she missed the taste of vegetables. Her village had grown their own.

There must be all kind of interesting ethnic enclaves around the world that not many people necessarily know about. I also recall asking a parent I'd known for a while about her accent. It sounded French, I thought - kind of... She said she was from the French speaking part of Switzerland; I'd had no idea there was such a place!

"Silence rhythm..." Nice.

2:47 PM  
Blogger Don Iannone, D.Div., Ph.D. said...

Nasra: You never cease to amaze me. Well done! Wishing you well, Don

1:51 PM  
Blogger BarbaraFromCalifornia said...

I must confess that I have not heard of those islands.

Thank you for the beautiful travel journey through such an enchanting place.

happy holidays to you and yours

4:13 PM  
Blogger Azer Mantessa said...

eid adha and happy new year.

4:56 AM  

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