They separated us.
Girls in one class,
And boys in another.
I thought it was better,
So that we’d be more comfortable,
And be able to ask questions freely.
But after explaining the upper part,
Ms. Amina said,
“That’s it.
You’ll read this lesson alone anyway.”
Mr. Saeed wiped sweat off his brow after explaining to us why women have periods.
I remember sitting with Wessam,
And in front of us were Mohamed Zain and Anwar.
Anwar turned around and said,
“So that means something explodes in your stomach,
While you’re just sitting there?”
I didn’t understand what he was talking about.
When I got it,
I thought I had injured myself.