My Tucson: From Baghdad to Tucson, with love
by Ali Rawaf on Feb. 19, 2008, under Opinion
Because of my nightmares of memories of people being killed and tortured, I didn't sleep at night in Iraq.
I was an 8-year-old kid when my mother asked me what I wanted to do in the future.
“I want to study abroad. Maybe in America or Great Britain,” I told her.
“Happy dreams,” she replied.
When I was in Baghdad, I watched all kinds of movies about the United States, ones that didn’t make me feel that America could be on the same Earth or that Americans are real people just like me.
The skyscrapers filled the cities where rain made the ground so green.
People snowball fighting not far from two cowboys in the desert shooting at each other: That was the America I dreamed about.
As a little kid, I knew I needed to learn English and speak it well. Luckily, I was accepted to an English-speaking school, the Iraqi Gifted Students’ School, which I attended for four years.
Because of my nightmares of memories of people being killed and tortured, I didn’t sleep at night in Iraq.
I was famous for staying up late and working on school work or writing articles online.
At 3 a.m., a friend called and suggested I apply for this program that takes Iraqi students to study in America and live with an American family.
“The deadline is in five hours,” he said.
I submitted my application just 20 minutes before deadline.
I took the English test and succeeded, and then I had an interview to test my spoken English was and see where I might want to go in the U.S. and what my goals were.
“I want to go to Michigan,” I said.
Aug. 8 was my departure day. After a week of traveling, my plane landed, and the passenger beside me woke me up. We took our bags and got off the plane.
We walked for a minute until I heard a loud, cheerful, “Welcome to Tucson, and by the way, we need to get you four vaccinations this afternoon.”
I saw no skyscrapers. I saw no grass. It was a bit hotter than Baghdad, and with no snow.
Basically, it was nothing like the movies.
But then I discovered downtown Tucson and Fourth Avenue, where you see all kinds of different cafes and all kinds of people who are friendly and nice. Where I can write articles and blog from the Epic Café.
I discovered playing soccer at Himmel Park. I discovered sitting in a car on top of Windy Point and discussing my heart with a friend.
I discovered Guerro Canelo and grilled jalapeños. I discovered people with open minds who will listen to me share about my lovely Baghdad and who are very generous to Iraqi refugees.
I discovered that Tucson is a place where all different cultures meet; you can find people from all over the world in the little, nice, sunny Tucson, and they are greeted with warmth and kindness, even though one’s heart is far away in the bustling streets by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
Thank you, Tucson.
Ali Rawaf, born in a jail in Baghdad in 1990, now is a senior at Desert Christian High School. E-mail: a.rawaf0.gmail.com
