ALL THE LIVES WE’VE NEVER LIVED

There’s a line at the end of Aadujeevitham, the brutal Malayalam movie based on the story of a man who was held captive and forced to work as a goatherd in Saudi Arabia: “All the lives we’ve never lived are just stories.”

The collective experiences of 15 writers have been collected in an anthology, The Uncaged Voice – Stories by Writers in Exile.

Syrian journalist and author Abdulrahman Matar; writer, journalist, interpreter, and human rights activist Pedro Restrepo from Colombia; former Turkish investigative journalist, senior reporter, editor, public speaker and author Arzu Yildiz; and Ethiopian filmmaker Gezahegn Mekonnen Demissie, read from their contributions to the book before a small but very engaged audience at a recent book launch.

Arzu Yildiz led the readings, apologizing for her spoken English. “My children laugh at my English,” she shared with a disarming smile. “I laugh along with them. I tell them never to let fear of being embarrassed get in the way of learning new things.”

Pedro Restrepo said writing, sharing the harrowing experiences of having to flee Colombia, help him heal.

Gezahegn Mekonnen Demissie who had helped set up PEN Ethiopia posed a poignant question: “Yesterday I was Ethiopian, today I am Canadian. But I am still me. What did I lose? What did I gain?”

Abdulrahman Matar touched upon details of horrific torture that he was subjected to. “I am a lucky person because I survived death under torture. I survived to write and tell stories.”

All of them underscored the fragility of democracy.

Matar had cautionary words about becoming complacent about the rights and freedoms we take so much for granted. “Guard these values, we have witnessed how quickly things can turn.”

Currently working the night shift at Magna International and looking for ways to publish his life story, Matar continues writing poems and hosts literary events for the Arab diaspora in Canada.

The last line in his contribution in The Uncaged Voice moved the lady next to me to tears.

“For now the poet is a loader, for now the poet is a loader.” She saw it as an indictment of Canada. It may have been, an expression of Matar’s frustration with the process. But I also saw hope in for now.

As the inimitable Faiz Ahmed Faiz wrote, Dil na ummeed toh nahi, nakaam hi toh hai – The heart may be unable to act in the moment, but it isn’t without hope. Tomorrow might bring a happier note for the writers who introduced themselves to a wider audience with the anthology.

“We did not carry weapons, and we did not burn or destroy anything,” said Matar. “We were just writing, and we wanted to write and speak freely.”

The Toronto International Festival of Authors taking place from September 19 to 29 presents a vast array of voices – both established  and emerging – in varied genres in a multitude of topics. Check it out at festivalofauthors.ca.

Shagorika Easwar