Two years into the Covid pandemic, it is difficult to imagine a time before when Sarah and I could visit the Fedasil Arrival Centre each Monday and interact with people from all over the world. I met Sarah on my very first visit to the center in January 2017, and we met on Mondays until…
Category: immigrant
Mondays On the Move: Give me a chance
This week’s “Mondays On the Move” song is called “Give me a chance.” We wrote this song with a young man from Yemen, who told us he was so grateful to Belgium for welcoming him. All he wanted was to be given a chance to give something back in return. This year has been a…
Mondays On the Move: I could be you
It’s the third week of our new “Mondays On the Move” series to promote freedom of movement for all people. Sarah and I have been choosing a different spot around Brussels, Belgium each Monday, where we share one of our migration songs with you. The first Monday, we talked about the project and sang…
Mondays On the Move: I am a word
It’s Monday, and we are “On the move” again! If you are just tuning in, Sarah and I recently created a new project we are calling “Mondays On the Move” to promote freedom of movement. Each Monday, we choose a different place to perform one of the migration songs we have written with refugees and…
When you cross the border
Two Mondays ago, I met a man named Samba at the refugee center where I volunteer in Brussels, Belgium. He told me he had been in Belgium for a week. My co-volunteer, Sarah, and I had posted a piece of paper on the white door beside our poetry wall as usual. As it was our…
Before the music
This Monday at Petit-Château was about as dismal at a November afternoon in Brussels can be. A friend came with me who had wanted to experience our poetry and songwriting for a long time. I am always nervous on these occasions because I want them to have a positive experience. My first snafu was nearly…
Give me a chance to live
Our 28 October Monday afternoon poetry and songwriting session at the refugee center was intense and deeply meaningful. It was a moment where many people came together and expressed the joy of being able to share a creative moment in a world of uncertainty. We began as usual by cleaning up our poetry wall….
You are always here with me
This Monday the weather was grey and cool, and it was quiet at Petit-Château. Sarah and I arrived and had a friend already waiting to visit with us. We posted printouts of refugee songs on our poetry wall and then posted the song from the previous week with the intention of singing it together. …
The power to overcome
In my life in Brussels, I try to keep things as simple as possible. This is a tall order for a short person, as my husband reminds me time and again that I always wind up creating situations that are more complicated than need be. Well, I’m only human. With regard to simplicity and…
The best is yet to come
In January 2016, I began volunteering at a refugee asylum center near the center of Brussels. I did a lot of research and contacted many places and organizations before happening upon one that gave a positive response to my request to offer songwriting from stories. When I participated in an entrepreneur accelerator program in Lowell,…
Marieke is Guiding Song 