By Sally Abed et al
An unusual context
“With classes moving online back in March, I started teaching the Travel Literature course and the Eighteenth-Century Literature course on Zoom. In all the classes I teach at Alexandria University in Egypt, I usually take the students on exhibition and museum tours in Alexandria to help them connect their studies to the surrounding culture. In addition, we used to have in-class workshops on different themes. The absence of such options due to the pandemic pushed me to think differently, and so inspired by Professor Albrecht Classen’s daily haikus, I decided to conduct haiku writing workshops with the students in both classes via Zoom. The activity was an extracurricular one whose aim was to break the monotony of the self-quarantine and the stressful situation of moving classes online. The students were understandably anxious about their classes, the pandemic and the exams. The workshop was a break away from all that and provided the students with a creative space of their own. During the workshops, I explained what haikus are, provided them with the necessary background, and showed them examples of haikus written by Ezra Pound, as well as other poets. Then I asked them to write their haikus accompanied with an image or a photo and I also participated in the activity. At the end of the Zoom workshops in both classes, the students read out their haikus to each other and commented on them. These are their own words, spontaneously written and unedited. Overall, it was an exiting and rewarding experience for everyone in class that they enjoyed thoroughly.” –Sally Abed
Sally Abed teaches at the English department in Alexandria University, Egypt. She holds a PhD in Comparative Literature with focus on medieval travel literature from the University of Utah. She publishes and writes on travel literature and women’s studies, among other topics.
Special Collection: Creativity in the Time of the Pandemic 2020>>
Haikus by Sally Abed
Scheherazade,
pray tell us a bedtime tale
of new life and hope.
Midas touch again
All worthless empty riches
Stillness everywhere
Perfect spider web
Ensnares the soul in silence
A flutter of wings
I spread my wings wide
And dived into a rainbow
Of thousand colors
I miss the sea much
It visits me in my dreams
Fresh spray on my face
Smiles hide behind masks
Eyes peep suspiciously now
I can’t sneeze in peace!
Haiku by Rana Tarek
A gilded snuff box
In a gentleman’s soft hands
Bourgeois decadence
Rana Tarek (Teaching Assistant for the 18th Century Literature class at Alexandria University and an MA candidate at the English department)
Haikus by students
By Rodaina Ahmed
The Nightingale dies
Leaving a red rose behind
I’m alone again
By Marawan Mohamed
A crow circles high
A soulless vessel moving
The sound of black cries
By Ziad Othman
Life is light and dark
Conflicted, Man, Eternally
At which side he lies.
By Yara Saad
The glow is so bright
From her soul even at night
Yet, life made her blind
By Mohamed Hatem
A thought so Obscene
It suffocates my gasping brain
Like college work in Quarantine
By Bassant Ahmed
A bright beam of hope
is what we pray for non-stop,
After grief broke our all
By Habeba Ibrahim
And in the kind light,
See Her wrinkled veiny hands,
A landscape of time.
A silvery lake,
The jungle’s heart beats with each
Breeze, and a lone howl.
By Mohamed Sayed
Literature connects
Art is not separated,
Museums welcome me.
By Mariem Mohamed
Talking with my dad
Always makes me feel okay
Despite a bad day
By Mohamed Ibrahim
Everyone got home-stuck
As a tiny virus spreads
Showing man’s weakness
By Mona Allam
A narrow street.
Bumps and holes filled the ground,
Yet she finds home.
By Hana Ihab & Jailan Helmy
My cat is staring
His eyes sparkle at the food
He, a cute demon
By Maryam Mostafa
Deep and mysterious
A walk in a dead forest
yet not all alone
By Heba Mohamed
Walking in the rain,
A tall man drowned in sadness
Only him feels it.
By Salma Hadhood
The dear self of mine
A trip; she deserves it
Overwhelming life.
Published on June 2, 2020. © Authors