I am walking on the streets of London with my mother, my sister, and her son. They are visiting for the first time since I moved here. We are bundled up in our coats. It is so cold that we just piled up wools and puffers and hats and scarfs and gloves and anything we could find.
We look terrible, but we’re happy.
Somewhere not so far away in the world, Anna, one of the members of our community, is walking towards Warsaw with her mother. Leaving all she had behind in Ukraine. We haven’t heard from her for two days.
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We stop for tea in Mayfair. Do you know Marchesi? It’s the most delicious Italian pasticceria. We order the famous Torta Aurora. The tea is burning my throat, it’s delicious. I see my sister smiling, laughing with her son. I see my mother’s eyes, filled with love. I am in heaven.
We are surrounded by Middle Eastern men. A woman enters, her face completely covered. She doesn’t look at them, she doesn’t look at us. They don’t look at her, they don’t look at us.
A friend meets us. …