It's not easy at all to spend the golden period of your life somewhere and then leave it without your emotions shaking, your senses crying, and your eyes tearing up; belonging to a place is not about the walls and buildings, but rather about the memories that settle in the heart, the faces that shared the details of the days with us, and the situations that shaped us.
That's why farewells are painful when the zero hour strikes; because we do not leave just a place, but we part from a part of our lives that left an indelible mark on our souls, and memorable events in our memory.
Rafha will remain etched in memory as long as there is breath in the soul that echoes, and a heartbeat throbs; some places transform from spots on a map to little homelands that inhabit the soul forever, and Rafha is one of those places that settled in the heart, appealed to the soul, and inhabited the sentiment like Amman and Jerusalem.
I spent years of my life in it, beautiful with its kind people, from whom I saw nothing but good, and touched nothing but noble and great virtues reflecting the authenticity of their essence. I made a vow to myself to defend every beautiful image I knew there, and to protect its people from any story that diminishes their worth or distorts their image, out of loyalty to their good manners, pleasurable interaction, and sincere affection I witnessed.
After a decade spent among its people as a teacher, I made mistakes in places and was correct in others, and I pray to God that I have fulfilled the trust, delivered the message, and left a good impact on the soul of every student I taught a letter to or instilled values in or offered advice to him and his parents.
Today, I leave Rafha while my heart clings to it. I nearly fail to convince myself that the time to depart has arrived. I leave it while internally convinced that some farewells are not complete farewells; because the places that we truly loved, we do not leave but rather carry them with us wherever we go. How many paths will I take, and Rafha will roam in my mind? How many meetings will I sit in, and its memories will pass before my eyes? How many situations will bring back to my mind generous faces and beautiful days I lived among its kind people?
I left it physically, but my soul has remained wandering in its alleys I had grown familiar with, shaking hands with faces I loved, and reliving details of days that were among the most beautiful in my lifetime. Even if fate has written departure, affection does not leave, memories do not depart, and loyalty remains as long as the heart beats and the soul flutters.
Peace be upon you, Rafha, in the earliest and the latest times. Peace upon your students, the brilliant ones. Peace upon your teachers, the honest and devoted ones. Peace upon your kind, pure people. The peace of a lover who departs with his feet but remains with his heart, who leaves by place, and his soul hangs in your sky, grateful to your people, loyal to your days, praying for you with all good and beauty.
Forgive us, oh noble people of Rafha, cover up what you have seen from us, and remember us in your private prayers and supplications; for the affection and loyalty between us is too great to be separated by distances or erased by days.
