On Saturday, October 11, we organized a fundraiser for Palestine here at Salte Trusche, with the Santa Carota community refreshment project, to be donated to the Gazzella OdV association, which has been helping Palestinian children and families with food and care for years.
We did this thanks to the help of numerous friends who assisted us in the organization, coordinated by Francesca, honoring the culture of this people through a lunch of Palestinian recipes followed by poetry readings, music, songs, and beautiful moments of silence.
The cooks Susanna and Valentina, Christine, Francesca, and little Selva donated their time to lovingly prepare food capable of creating a feeling of connection with a humanity so wounded. Theirs, but also ours, because of the invisible thread that binds us all together. It was an opportunity to remind ourselves that it is in the community, as well as in our inner work, that we can find the courage to express our humanity each time.
We would like to thank, as we have already done verbally, those who provided us with some of the ingredients for lunch: Giuseppe Levito, Orto di Pitigliano and Associazione della cipolla della Selva for the vegetables, Silvana and Paola for the pomegranates, and Sergio for the craft beer.
To stimulate curiosity about this culture, here is the menu, taken from the beautiful “Pop Palestine,” Strade Bianche edition:
crispy chickpeas
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cold yellow pumpkin cream with lemon
rice with fried vegetables maqlouba
falafel with labane
fava bean dip
eggplant and pomegranate
pita bread/khobez
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anise and sesame cookies
babousa
cardamom coffee
sage tea
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freshly squeezed pomegranate juice
craft beer with olive leaves
Thanks to the many people of all ages, friends and new acquaintances, who wanted to participate and donate first and foremost their presence and a feeling of connection that made the day spent together light, intense, and intimate.
The entire amount collected was donated to Gazzella ODV. We can continue to support their incredible volunteer work by making bank transfers to IBAN IT54D0501803200000011052792, Banca Etica di Roma.
What does it mean to be a poet in times of war?
It means apologizing,
constantly apologizing, to the burned trees,
to the birds without nests, to the crushed houses,
to the long cracks on the sides of the roads,
to the pale children, before and after death,
and to the face of every sad mother,
or murdered mother!
What does it mean to be safe in times of war? It means being ashamed
of your smile,
of your warmth,
of your clean clothes, of your hours of boredom,
of your yawn,
of your cup of coffee,
of your peaceful sleep,
of your loved ones still alive, of your satiety,
of the water available, of the clean water,
of the possibility of taking a shower,
and the chance that has left you still alive!
My God,
I don’t want to be a poet in times of war
(Poem by poet Hend Joudah, from “Their cry is my voice,” Fazi publisher).
