I couldn’t understand their language but they gave me a bag of salt, a bag of rice, and oil, one toothbrush, one soap, two buckets, I didn’t know why, and bags of things I never saw before.
They called me Jane. My mother named me for her mother. My name was not Jane.
They wanted me to sign but I could not read this language
or this one
or this one.
I could not read this either so they wrote my name.
These were my mother’s earrings. I gave one to each daughter: “Sell them only if you have to.”
The camp was crowded with strangers
and angry men.
I told my daughters to cover up.
Finally they led us to a tent…
…for women who were alone.
There, I found someone who spoke my language. She said “I’ve been here for years. In two years or five years I don’t know where I’ll be. Only God knows.
“We need to survive with our children so they can be something in the future.”
I had to be strong for so long. Now I poured out everything to her.
It was the night before my daughter’s 10th birthday
when soldiers came to my door, asking for my husband.
I said he died in the war. Then they pushed me aside.
They threatened to take my daughter for a bride.
I screamed, “She’s only nine. Take me!” As they forced me to the bedroom, I yelled, “Turn up the TV very loud.”
They said they would be back for my daughter tomorrow.
The minute they were gone, I told the girls to pack only what could fit in one suitcase. I took my mother’s tiny gold earrings.
First we ran, then I gave a truck driver all the money I had to take us to the border.
Then we walked, I don’t know how long. I couldn’t feel my feet
and I was pregnant from the attack.
She said, “There is a good doctor here, and you are not alone anymore.”
Our first morning at sea a mist rose over gentle waters.
We had made it through the night.
We were hungry, but we could keep going.
My friend caught a fish.
He divided it among the children
and gave some to my sister for her baby. I saw her smile.
At the end of the first day I thought we would be ok.
Our second day we saw lightning.
We turned away fast
but the waves came after us.
My wife held the children
and everyone hung on.
As long as I could, I hugged my sister.
THEN THE STORM HIT.
The wind tore my nephew from his father’s arms
and swept my sister into the sea.
My mother grabbed the baby.
I dove in after my sister.
…dark hair in dark water. I reached for it, but the hair slipped from my fingers. All night I kept diving for my sister’s hair. I kept diving for her all night.
Our third day at sea
16 went to the dock. On day 3, 13 kept going.
On the fourth day we saw land.
People came towards us from the shore. We were afraid they would force us back to sea
but they were kind.
I wanted to scream across the sea to everyone who died there.
Then a big white Land Cruiser came for us and in the distance, we began to see…
We were strangers in a strange land and we had to start our lives over.