Under the Banyan Tree

Book excerpt: Two students, Laila and Abdallah met in High School in the early 1950s. Upon graduation in 1953, Laila went to London to further her education and Abdallah opted to join the labor market as a teacher of English in a night school. After two years of working, Abdallah wanted to have a better future. He applied to and was accepted by the American University of Beirut (AUB) as a full time student. While walking on campus, Abdallah spotted Laila's sister Najwa who also was a student at the university. He asked her about Laila. Najwa said, Laila is still in London and she asked about you. Abdallah told her to please say hello to her for me. Six months later, Abdallah asked Najwa about Laila. She said well, Laila is back home in Beirut now. Abdallah said, hopefully she and I will cross paths again. A week later, on June 15, 1958, Abdallah saw a pretty young lady sitting on a bench under the Banyan tree. He approached her reluctantly and asked if she were Laila. She responded by asking if he is Abdallah. Both rekindled their relationship after five years of separation. They dated on and off for two years and decided to get engaged on October 20, 1960. They got married on December 15, 1962 after which they traveled to the United Stated as Abdallah was accepted to the graduate school at the University of California at Berkeley.