Tsawwar… Ruwan Teodros
Sunday in Saida
“The last time I visited my jeddo’s village in the South was a year ago. The flowers were bursting with color and the sun was burning my shoulders. My jeddo – who passed five years ago – was originally from Insarieh, Lebanon. He was born and raised in a tiny home that has now grown to become a bigger house still inhabited by many of his direct family members. It is a special village: though not particularly impressive or grand, it is a place that meant so much to him. As an Ethiopian-Lebanese woman, I’ve always felt confused about my identity and questioned my sense of belonging in Lebanon. But on that visit to my jeddo’s village, I felt the power of my Lebanese roots. More specifically, my connection to the brave and beautiful South of Lebanon that has been under brutal Israeli aggression since October 8th. These photographs were taken on a Canon A-1 film camera that my jeddo bought for my mother in the early 80s, who in turn passed on to me. Forty years later – and my first time shooting with the camera – I took this shot of a family enjoying a Sunday outing together in Saida. It is bittersweet looking at this photograph now, because little did I know that this very day would be a long while before I could visit my grandfather’s village again. But I know I’ll be back soon, chasing that peaceful summer day in the South, with the sun burning my skin.”
