Palestine is Still on My Horizon | What Next?

When reflecting on my current position, I am reminded of the story of my families displacement into Amerikkka. My father & uncle, then in their early 20's, had travelled from Kuwait to Kingsville, Texas to study at Texas A&I. During their studies my grandparents wanted to come visit for 2 months to see how they were doing. All my aunts, uncles & cousins came accompanied with them, & on the day of what should have been their departure, August 2nd, 1990, the Gulf War ignited, leaving them stranded in Amerikkka as refugees. For my grandparents, this would be their 2nd displacement. My immediate family stayed here in Texas, & the majority moved to Asheville, North Carolina.

Now, here I am, in August of 2025, still in Texas. July, the month of what would have been my pilgrimage to return to Palestine for the first time, Israel had started bombing Iran. July has come & passed. Flights were cancelled, numerous airlines still now refuse to fly to the Middle East, & all the plans for this future that I had set into motion seemed to fall apart in an instant. Israel now has a 'ceasefire' with Iran, yet ceasefires hold no meaning & are not wise to plan a precarious future around. War has shaped the course of my life in indescribable ways, yet it hasn't even touched my physical being.

& In this moment of falling apart, the inevitable question rises from the ashes-- what next?

Certainly I am not the kind of person to stay down, nor let colonizers dictate my life. If I cannot move to Palestine, then I will inch closer & closer. & if I must stay in Amerikkka longer, then I will leave Texas to heal my relationship with Turtle Island, for it deserves a better memory. Turtle Island deserves to be held preciously in memory as the Indigenous lands it is, not this colonial imperial nightmare it's been abused into.

I am still leaving Texas. I moved to Corpus Christi with the intention of solitude, artistic growth, & being closer to the ocean to feel closer to Palestine. I did not know that I would be moving here only a few days before the genocide started on October 7th, 2023. & I tried everything I could to not have to move at this time again, but timing is an interesting, cosmic & unavoidable thing. I am leaving Texas the week of October 7th.

After asking where I should travel to tattoo, the region that has responded the most is the East Coast (although I will say California is an honorable mention!) & after looking over & over again at the route I would take along the East Coast, one state stands in the middle of all the desired states I would want to travel to; North Carolina.

Palestine is still on my horizon-- when will it not be? & with every step taken, hopefully brings that reality closer. Until then... see you soon, Asheville.