Poetry: Ashraf AboArafe
We came from faraway oceans,
carrying in our bags hearts aflame with knowledge,
and in our eyes a homeland of light.
We came to Al-Azhar,
not merely as seekers of certificates,
but as pilgrims of dreams,
bowing to learning every morning,
ascending in spirit within the sanctuary of words.
Yili Putriani spoke,
her voice like dawn over a distant island:
“We came in search of knowledge,
our dreams larger than distances,
our ambitions purer than the sky after rain.”
At the graduation ceremony,
years blossomed within their eyes,
fatigue turned into a song of triumph,
and Al-Azhar became a mother
sending her daughters forth as light.
Here,
continents embrace in one hall,
and the future is written
with the ink of faith, knowledge, and hope.
