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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 April 1999 Issue No. 423 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 1 - 7 April 1999 Issue No. 423
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Culture Focus Interview Profile Features Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Once, in the desert
Critics from many parts of the world have produced innovative interpretations of my works, finding therein entirely new themes that no one has dealt with before. One critic, for example, has interpreted the Nile in my books as representing the worldly and sensuous, and the desert as purity and spirituality.
During my childhood days in Abbasiya, I recall the large expanse of desert known as Ard Al-Uyun. For us, as children, it was the "Mulid Al-Nabi desert" since we knew it as the venue for the mulid festivities every year. On other days of the year, the land was just an arid expanse of desert. I often spent time there, to meditate or read poetry. I enjoyed the dry desert climate, and the sea of sand stretched endlessly before my eyes. But once the sun set, I hurriedly set off home, afraid of what desert creatures might make their appearance after sunset.
In this area was a plot of land which we used as a football pitch. We split ourselves into two teams. When we competed in tense and exciting games, the residents of Abbasiya would come to cheer for one team or the other.
The desert of my childhood was located between the eastern part of Abbasiya and an area where tombs were being built at the time. This area is today the Madafin Al-Ghafir (Watchman's Tombs) cemetery. The desert of my childhood has disappeared. It has become a busy area of Abbasiya, covered with buildings and bustling with life.
Based on an interview by Mohamed Salmawy.
