Marwa and I have been knowing each other for over eight years. Our long-distance friendship started back when I was working on a Khaleeji forum online. I worked from the comfort of my home. I didn’t have to take transport back and forth from work or to interact with people in real life. Messages were all that was required for communication. The work itself included .... which was of my interest.

One day, there was a need to recruit more staff. I offered this opportunity to my ex-college peers which was logical but I also contacted people I didn’t know personally. Yasmin was one of the latter. I got to know Yasmin through Lang-8, a website where I had my English writing corrected by natives. I asked her if she knew more people who could work on the forum and she recommended Marwa, her sister-in-law.

A friend was shocked that I offered jobs to people I didn’t know well. She wondered what if they didn't do a good job. My mantra of thinking was, and still is, that we had to try people to find out if they were fit for a job or not. I believe that would apply to relationships and friendships as well. We just have to try to reach an answer! Yasmin didn’t do a good job but Marwa did. We kept working on this forum for a year or so until we both were kicked out along with others as new blood was brought in.

Time flew. I've had no contact with Yasmin anymore while Marwa and I have become friends.

Definitely, there were some silent gaps in our friendship but in the end, we are here. From time to another, we made calls and video calls. We shared numerous voice messages about different events in our lives. Something that I was expecting from my so-called “close friend” but it was never done.

Additionally, she was my guru in the kitchen. A few years ago, I knew nothing about cooking. I remember that time when I prepared lasagna for the first time without searching for the recipe. I got it out of the oven and it was so hard. I sent a photo to Marwa who humorously went like: “What the hell did you do exactly?” She explained to me that the lasagna needed liquid, tomato sauce, to be cooked.

Who would believe that in a few years, I’d do very well in the kitchen and I’d love cooking, as well as baking! And Marwa witnessed my journey from zero to hero. I still sometimes mess up in the kitchen but every mistake is a chance to learn from. And most importantly, I have Marwa whom I can run into before the recipe turns into a mess.

Later on, I enrolled in some transcription projects. Although I wasn’t self-educated on my hearing loss then, I knew that was something I couldn't do well on my own. Hence, I asked Marwa to join me in working on these projects.

Marwa as a wife and mother of two daughters lacked time while I had plenty of time but I “lacked” hearing. She could do the listening parts while I studied guidelines and reviewed the transcription batches and that was my forte. We were a perfect team. The money I got from these projects enabled me to make sporadic trips in months to come. I owe her one. Without her help, I wouldn’t have been able to do any of these jobs, and as a result, gained that money and kept traveling.

When I look back at it now, I feel lucky not to have been so reluctant to know people online. I’m grateful for having grabbed this opportunity and for having allowed Marwa to prove herself either in the job or in friendship. Moreover, that was evidence that I’m not asocial as some people accused me of. I can make steady and solid friendships. I just did it the way that suited me better. That was when I knew nothing about hearing loss. I wasn't aware that I preferred written communication behind screens because I intuitively wanted to avoid using my "impaired" hearing.

Marwa and I met in person for the first time last year, 9/9/2023 in her hometown, Damietta. I visited her this August as well. She was all ears and a good advisor when I finally opened up. She shared her insights gently and wisely. We disagreed on some topics but disagreement couldn’t ruin our mutual respect.

Furthermore, her friendship made me reconsider the friendships with others whom I thought were close. I still appreciate my relationships with those "others" but I’ve realized that I have some requirements that I need to fulfill from my friendships. I totally understand that not all of them will be close friends, not all will be here whenever I need them, and not all can keep in regular contact. However, those whom I call close friends have to fill in some blanks in my life as I should do the same with them. Marwa could give me what I needed and hopefully, I will return the favor.

Above all, Marwa was the one who could understand and acknowledge how lost I was feeling. She was the one who encouraged me to seek help for my mental health. I understand that life gets in the way and she has already a busy life. But I hope we will manage to keep in contact as we did during the last eight years. And I'm conscious that I still have a long way to walk, mainly on my own but I will never forget what she did for me.

Thanks for being there for me, Marwa.