Rakan Shadi al-Aydi

My son Amir was my companion and my friend. He was not yet five years old. Amir was affectionate, shy, very sensitive, and stubborn. He was very attached to me. In the morning he would wake up and kiss me while I was sleeping, and I would usually wake up. His mother (may God heal her) would prepare his breakfast, and I would make him his favorite juice and a sandwich. Often we would go down together, me and his siblings, Rakan and Rahaf, to wait for the bus. When it came, he would get on, waving happily to me on his way to kindergarten. Then he would return in the afternoon, laughing all the way up until he came through the apartment door. His first question was, "Where's Dad?" He would relax knowing I was home, throw down his bag, and say, "Do my homework for me." He would then sit on his phone for an hour or more, and then go down with his brother Rakan to play in front of the house. After an hour or more, Amir would come back to make sure I was still at home and hadn't gone out without him, then he would go back to play again. And this Amir, my companion and my love, has gone far away and will never return, along with his brother, his paternal grandmother, his maternal grandmother, his paternal uncles and aunt, his paternal cousins, and his maternal aunts and uncles. He left a deep void in my soul. He didn't even finish his school year, and I didn't even get to say goodbye. I will not forgive and I will not pardon the one who burned me alive!!!