Sacred Filial Devotion in an Authentic Literary Heritage

When the late great educator Ahmad Samih al-Khalidi passed into the presence of his Lord, his wife, the distinguished woman of letters Mrs. Anbara Salam Khalidi, was in London, visiting her children who are studying in the institutes of England; and a few days after her arrival the terrible blow took her by surprise, and she returned to Lebanon.

Here we publish a letter that came to her from her daughter, Miss Randa, a student at Oxford University, as a treasure among the treasures of undying feeling. She wrote:

My Mommy,

"... I do not know what to write to you, my darling.. I do not know how I can possibly express to you what I feel whenever I think of you. Why write, then, and what can I say — shall I console you, my life, and for whom... No, I shall not try to console; rather my duty is to write to you and ask you to take care of your health. For you are ours, Mama, as he was yours, and you are dear to us, Mama, as he was dear to you; for he left you to us, Mama — he left you to us, as he left us to you... So for our sake do not exhaust yourself, and for our sake be mistress of your emotions as you were here.. and before you went away.

... And we shall not let him go from us, Mama, and above all not from you; rather I and my brothers and sisters will hold fast to him and keep him always among us, for we are of him, and through us you will see him and speak with him.

He wearied himself enough, Mama, and he fell asleep. So let us leave him sleeping, for he needs rest, and let us try not to disturb him.. and let us do our best. He does not like to be disturbed..."

"... And as he wanted us to be, so shall we be — nay, better; and what he wanted us to do, we shall do; and what he began and did not finish, we shall finish. And we shall always remain proud of you and of him..."

"... And I, Mama, want to say to you that I believe in a tender, wise Lord who has a wide and spacious paradise; to this paradise Papa has gone, and to this Lord he has preceded us. Why, then, should we weep, if he is happy with his Lord! I believe in God with a strong faith, and I can imagine how much He loves Papa and esteems him — and that is why He chose him out from among all people. And eternal life must surely have an existence; and if it does not, then what is the soul, and what is man? ..."

"... And you, Mama — you, my soul — stay as he left you. But if you need me, my darling, and if you feel that I could be of use at your side, then send for me, for I am yours. He wants your rest before my education; so let me come to comfort you, and to remember him with you. Send for me, my life, for you need me now more than at any time that has passed. And if I am not with you now, then when shall I be? And I — I too find no rest except at your side, my life..."

Randa