Year end wishes in Damascus – Love but above all peace
DAMASCUS: In a cozy Damascus coffee shop, university student Solaf Hammoud scribbles a heartfelt New Year wish on a yellow card then hangs it on a twinkling Christmas tree.
Instead of tinsel and baubles, the Christmas tree is decorated with a simple string of lights and dozens of coloured squares bearing the hopes and prayers of Damascenes, war-weary after nearly seven years of conflict.
“I hope all my displaced friends come back as soon as possible,” reads Hammoud’s invocation.
The 25-year- old says she does not have many new wishes this year but would really like is to start her own media programme and study in Paris.
“All my childhood dreams are still in my head,” says Hammoud, her long, dark hair draped over a white knitted sweater.
“Every year I stand in front of the tree and wish for them again. Maybe they’ll come true one day, but the most important thing is that we still have hope – that we keep trying until they come true.”
Although Syria is predominantly a Muslim country, many Syrians celebrate Christmas.
The candle- lit Zeriab coffee shop is teeming with young Syrians, sipping warm drinks and chatting while a soft, jazzy tune plays in the background.
As new customers walk in, they marvel at the tree and snap a few pictures, before writing their own wishes on red and pink strips of paper.
“I want to travel. That’s it,” reads one, and another says: “I wish I could find the girl that’s on my mind.”
But others include the painful prayers of a generation exhausted by war, including many young men hoping to evade Syria’s compulsory two-year military service.
“God, postpone army service. Oh, God, oh God.” — AFP