The Home We Had
For 21 years, you, Qatar,
were the home we – expats and nomads – had.
You were constant, welcoming, and steadfast as the sun and sand;
a land where villas, compounds and towering apartments offer a refuge at hand.
A land of contrast –
harsh yet friendly, strict yet accommodating.
Where sunrise and sunset are equally grand.
Where the desert meets the sea and hounds often run free.
Where thorn trees thrive, yet palm trees sway.
Where camels roam and freeways weave.
Where dust chokes and heat erodes
the stamina needed to stay on the go.
Where ancient and modern collide.
Where designer malls and souqs happily exist, side by side.
Where Karak Chai and Café Latte,
shawarmas and gourmet are equally dignified.
Where the city of glass rises from the sand
that is striving, striving, to overwhelm it again.
Where many cultures and religions reside.
Not colliding – working, living, peaceably, side-by-side.
Where we, unbelonging, belonged;
where we found our safe place,
our shelter.
Yes, You, Qatar, were the home we had.
I look back, over my shoulder.
How proudly you stand!
But we ...
we merely passed through like the shifting sand.
(© Sandy Brandt, 2022)
