Being An Editor In Quarantine, Our Life Editor Reflects

Dear readers,

The beauty of an engaging community is the unspoken understanding that sparks as soon as someone puts our thoughts and feelings into words. Unootha’s aim revolves around that — an engaging community. As I looked into the multiple pieces that make up our Life school, I couldn’t help but realize how special it is that we live in a time where we have the means to share comprehension in such wide and varied means.

These stressful times have been and are confusing for most of us; knowing we are not alone makes coping with the situation a little bit easier — or that’s what I’m telling myself. It isn’t typical for me to be left on my own, with my thoughts exclusively toying around my feelings, let alone sharing my personal space for this long with the same individuals with whom I share a home. Feeling comfortable has been a tough task lately and I’ve done the most absurd things just to avoid facing a family member when my thoughts are hot air. I even hid in the restroom for an hour more than once because I felt invaded and needed to stay alone. 

Of course, I can’t be the only one struggling for privacy and peace of mind in a house where the Arabic culture is prominent. Engaging in discussions about this tight air with my peers felt relieving. It also led me to start thinking of folks in unfortunate environments, who aren’t as lucky to have two square meters of freedom as I did in my bathroom. You need to know that you aren’t on your own even if everything indicates the opposite. The word needs to reach you.

I’d like to think that we are doing our best in our own manner to improve that last matter. Building a strong, open and articulate community, regardless of their current whereabouts is truly a privilege and I’m pleased to be part of it.

The current crisis has made the “connecting” aspect quite striking when reading the works shared for this issue, and I’m happy that we are presenting something that I’m positive our readers will relate to, one way or another. I really hope this would consequently bring something, even the tiniest bit, positive to our society.

I hope this letter has given you a small insight of what I, as a simple editor, wish to reach with the magazine and how I hope you can recognize yourself in a winging idea somewhere on a piece from the “Location & Spaces” issue.

With love,

Halima Zaghbib.