“Welcome, welcome!” Hanan shouted over her shoulder as she swept out of the tent over to her impromptu fire. Allison and I sat and Yousef brought forks and clear plastic cups of water. Their oldest held an infant, their youngest, across the table. Hanan returned whispering welcome welcome with a pot she set in front of us, and we all peered through steam at plump zucchinis. “What’s this?” I asked. “Mahashi,” she smiled. “It means ‘stuffed,’” Yousef added with a raised finger. I opened one and found rice and beef redolent with cinnamon. Yousef flopped down pita bread the width of my torso. He noticed the package of figs I brought, held them up, and frowned. “Not necessary,” he said. “Please.” His voice was deep and resonant and squeaked when he laughed.
Hanan didn’t eat and her face grew serious. I asked what she studied. She said Arabic literature and smiled again. Her favorite poet was Al-Ma’arri from Ma’arrat Al Noaman, who wrote, “There is always a little light in the darkness.” She made silly faces at the baby.
I took Yousef to the Acropolis in Athens despite the rules. Residents were not allowed in cars, but I wanted to give him a day away. We found a halal restaurant in the Plaka for lunch, and when I went to the restroom, Yousef paid for the meal. When I protested, he just laughed.
Our last night together, Hanan opened up as we drank clear plastic cup after cup of tea. She was pregnant when they escaped Syria and took a rubber boat to an island and then were brought by the military to the camp. When she saw the tent where they would wait for the EU to decide their fate, she confessed that she didn’t want to have the child. She became depressed. They had thought they would connect with family in Germany. No official said it outright but she knew they would have to wait in Greece and she would have to give birth in the camp. “But,” she said, and her eyes lit up as she played with his fingers, “when he came, he was my light.” He smiled up at her smile. “Now every morning we wake up in the tent an hour before anyone and we speak together in our own language.”
