Before Eid – Thursday, 27 March, 2025 @ 7:47 am

I am seated at the teacher’s desk at the front of the room
A podium fused to the side of the desk
A white board drilled into the wall behind me
A drop-down LCD screen waiting above me
Computers line 3 sides of the room

On the opposite wall, 2 windows— 
the left with its shades open, revealing a palm tree
the right with its shades closed, blocking the spring sun

Very little is powered on in the room—
not the two AC wall units,
not the LCD projector hanging from the ceiling
All the computers are off
except one, its hard drive whirring 

Yesterday’s work email stated curtly

Subject: Eid Al-Fitr Holiday
The Eid Al-Fitr holiday will be observed as follows

1. Starts on Sunday, 30 March, 2025
2. Ends on Monday, 7 April, 2025

The resumption of work will be on Tuesday, 8 April, 2025

I wait for a class period to begin—with no students, no attendance
I wait for the start of my Eid holiday
I wait for my flight to Romania tomorrow

A student unexpectedly arrives
No class, teacher?
You take attendance?
I smile and tap my temple
I check her report, give her feedback, send her off, resume my writing

There is slight ringing in my right ear
Might be from years of loud headphones
Might be one of my medications

I wait for my 50-minute class to conclude
I wait for meaning to manifest—
something more than the hum of a PC
or the soft static in my ear—

as I try to write 
only the truth 
of this moment

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Photo by Keenan Barber on Unsplash