Yacoubian keeps his fridge loaded with cheeses like asiago and parmigiano as well as jibneh mshallaleh—Lebanese string cheese. Prosciutto and capicollo are ready to complete a grazing board.

Then the kitchen where my mother used to prepare traditional meals, where the aroma of maqlooba, maftool, and the mouthwatering manakish of zaatar, thyme, and cheese could be found. Then my desk ...

I am no romantic poet. Yet Susan Abulhawa’s first published collection of poems (My Voice Sought The Wind, Just World Books, 2013) slices directly to my heart. Like her, I once wrote poetry in Arabic.