(perhaps) love

Pel is dressed in hearts. Valentine's Day is coming up, 3 days away. We are making cards in all of the classrooms, a lesson on addresses, postage, letters, mailpeople. All of them will get a card in the mail on Saturday, if I've gotten the addresses right.

"I love hearts," Pel says, red plastic rhinestone-dotted hearts on her pierced ears, small pink hearts on her red turtleneck, a sparkly white heart on a thin cord around her neck.

"I can tell. You're covered in them! And look, they are all around the room! Do you know why there are so many hearts all around this week?"

She smiles, and turns her face towards mine eagerly, her dark brown pigtails swaying from their perch high on her head. Pel likes being asked questions. "Valentine's Day" she says.

We start talking about cards and candy, and what we love and how we say "I love you." I tell her you can say "I love you" in any language, even silent ones, and ones that aren't really what you would think a language is at all.

She asks what language is.

"What do you speak at home? Arabic?"

"Kurdish."

"What do you speak at school?"

"English."

I begin to explain something about language when Pel says "Kurdish is Islam. Islam is good." She smiles brightly.

Pel is seven. She learned English in 3 months.

"Do you go to mosque?"

She nods happily.

"Do you go on the weekends?"

Nod. Smile spreading.

"Do you go on the weekdays?"

Nod, smile widening. She is moving a yellow marker, cap off, absently, from one hand to another, tilting it up and down.

"You go during the week and during the weekend?"

"Yes, both" she says, small teeth winking out in her smile.

"Islam is good" she says again, putting her marker down and picking up a pencil.

"I'm glad Islam is good for you. Does it make you happy?"

Smile, nod, gleaming eyes.

"Do you like Islam?"

I tilt my head. "I don't like or dislike Islam. It just isn't right for me."

On the bottom of the coloring sheet of the bear in the dress with the purse, holding a heart-shaped valentine, Pel draw a "t".

"Do you like this?"

I shake my head. "No, Christianity is not right for me. Islam is good for you, Christianity is good for some people, but neither is right for me."

She nods, picks up her yellow marker, and starts working on the Bear's beaded necklace.