an anomaly for resilience, born in a village off the northern west bank city of nablus, he sat as I walked down the steps of downtown amman, curious eyes staring & yet dazed with passers by, I could not resist, but to sit beside him as those eyes told tales I was sure of.
aged by situations & not time, unemployed yet also experienced fruits & vegetables seller, he spoke of a once time that passed when his shop was one he saw as a drive for life.
“an accident & here I am” he said, metal plates in his leg, & yet stood with much pride to take his days as they come.
“no children” he said, & a one sided love, that was monetary driven from the other side, he never did have a chance in since the inability to provide was seen as a “harm” for a continuity of that one sided partner in life. “limps don’t attract do they?” he asked, & I for one know it well, as a limp that faded, was once at me seen to cripple the other side of life!
he spoke of his experience trying to find ends-meat, selling olives for scraps with others over-ran his profit, not for pity, he spoke with pride of his self-worth being above all.
he spoke of pictures within his mind, of days on end that only brought smiles, alone, yet, with a smile to share for all.
an anomaly for resilience, that is he, a man on a step of life, where he can always just be.
photography by nabil darwish, copyright 2021 all rights reserved.
location: amman, jordan
