Thank You

For spending nearly half of your lives just to give us a brighter future. To fulfill the dreams they were not able to do and to give us the kind of life they never had.

at the Al Faisaliyah Mall waiting for eftr, break fast

Being here is a blessing. I was able to get a very little glimpse of how life is here in a country were your right as a human, let alone a woman, is very limited. I often ask them how Saudi were 20 years ago. It was more difficult than it was now. There were so many mutawa (religious police) that often would make a surprise check on their iqama (visa).

Today, few things have changed, my parents said. Foreign women are allowed to go out without a tarha (veil). But, you just need to keep it in your neck just in case. Very few Saudi women are now able to walk on the streets alone. Life here is not easy. Specially when internet was just an imagination decades ago. And, I am so proud of my parents for surviving Riyadh. For all the pain, tears, hardship and things they haven't said or I haven't known they never gave up. For the love of us they withstand everything. I feel so blessed to be their daughter. Have they given up on life I won't be where I am today nor be who I am right now.