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The Graduate
‘Rauf, we will all be there for your last day of school, you’re going to have yummy snacks with your friends and give away goodbye presents’ ‘Okay, mummy’ When Joe received notice for a job secondment in the Netherlands, we knew the best decision to make as a family was to move together. He was…
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The Switch
It was probably Rauf’s second month in school when I saw it with my own eyes. It was after school. He wanted to stay back a little longer to play at the playground. I stood to the side, watching him. Then, out of nowhere, a boy appeared behind him. He picked Rauf up and shoved…
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Finding Thomas Mason
When we left KL, I could already see my parents’ brains working overtime plotting a trip to visit us. True enough, two months after we arrived. It wasn’t exactly a surprise — we’d agreed to meet in London first and then head to NL together. I knew living in Europe would make travelling within the…
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Of Locksmiths, the ER and Ikea
My ears were still ringing when we arrived in the Netherlands. Rauf’s scream at KL airport was still echoing prominently in my eardrum—like an uninvited post encore performance. The moment we left the airport and drove 2.5 hours to Maastricht it occurred to me that this was going to be our home for the next…
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I don’t like this idea!
That was what Rauf screamed into my ear as I carried him through the Immigration gate. 18 hours later, my ear was still ringing when we arrived at our new country of residence. Six months prior, life felt settled. Joe was working in Singapore, Rauf was happy at school and I was thriving. For the…
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The Flip: Swiss
For as long as I can remember, Farah and I always had our annual bestie trip. When I was a student, she’d dragged her ass to visit me wherever I was – England, Italy and Ireland. When I started working, it was Japan and Thailand. When I was 7 months pregnant, she was my guardian…
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