Gemotions

The scent of cardamom and cinnamon filled the air, a scent that transported her back to her grandmother's kitchen. He’d made her favorite dish. And then, in a halting, almost childish voice, he spoke. The Arabic words were clumsy, the accent thick, but the intention was clear. He had been learning.

She felt a hollowness inside, a vast and empty space. The walls she'd erected around her heritage seemed to crumble, and in their place, a painful truth. She had denied him a part of her, a part of her soul.