This Is Me and my Beautiful Wife
Najma
For 31 years we had what I would genuinely describe as a perfect marriage! We fell out sometimes (usually my fault!) but we were always there for each other through the ups and downs of a life well lived.
Then in 2021 she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
We carried on living life to the full all through her treatment, I have never seen such strength in a person as she refused to let the cancer break her.
The last row of pictures were all taken in the Summer and Autumn of 2022
You can see we travelled and had fun exploring!
On the 26th April 2023 Najma died.
She was the backdrop to my whole life, the watermark on the pages that was always there behind everything I was, and now she was gone.
I felt utterly overwhelmed by emotions I couldn't begin to explain to other people. Like a balloon tightly stretched I had to let the pressure out.
Tears helped (don't ever be afraid to cry!) but I needed to find a way to put my feelings out into the world so that they wouldn't become unbearable.
So I picked up a pen and wrote this.
30th April 2023
I’ve loved her,
Held her,
Hand,
And tight all through the night.
We’ve loved and laughed days away
Had children and danced with life.
I’ve been cherished and nursed,
Then I cherished and nursed,
And then she was gone.
I cleaned her and said many prayers,
Carried her one last time,
Then laid her to sleep.
And now life goes on.
I feel her everywhere,
Memories catch in my tear ducts
Before falling away into light
I’ve loved her.
I love her.
No more needs to be said.
And that is how Spun From Air and Sunlight came to be.
I realised that ever since I was a boy I have loved playing with the rhythms and sounds of words . I wrote more and began performing my poems and stories on stage with the Rosetta Theatre company. I hope you like my writing and I know that you can always find peace in your life as much as I have in mine.