El Marsam Studio - Writings

Morning of Light

an Egyptian Journal

Book Review

by Susie Hearn

for Heliopolis Magazine, Cairo 1997

Ginda does an entertaining job of narrating what it is really like to reside (and survive) in Egypt and become truly acquainted with this exotic land. In reading her book I found myself saying over and over "Yes!" whether laughing or sighing. For Egypt is indeed a "land of enchantment," and Ginda in her journal not only discovers and explores its treasures and frustrations, but also shares them in living color, in vibrant, descriptive prose and poetry. And just in case you miss either the beauty or the lessons offered in her reflections, she paints them for you literally in the portraits and landscapes of the original artwork that illustrates her book.

Ginda’s love of and compassion for her fellow creatures, coupled with an insatiable curiosity, lead this ‘card-carrying extrovert" on daily adventures through everything from the nightmare of downtown Cairo traffic, to the beauty in the harshness of life in the desert. We grow with Ginda through lessons in spiritual discipline and charity ferreted out from under Islamic sacrificial rites that make most westerners uneasy. We share with her and all women the universality of laughter. And through it all Ginda is able to make the reader see what she sees, hear what she hears, and reflect with her on what it all means.

As I come to know Ginda Simpson, I find it very difficult to separate the woman from the author/artist. That I believe is the worth and the charm of her journal. What you see is what you get--the awe, the humor, the nosiness, the talent, and the love that are Ginda, taking on the mystery, the adventure, the beauty, and the frustration that are Egypt!

Some might call her/her journal naïve, but I would respond that she allows herself to be vulnerable by reaching out, and so is able to get into the heads and lifestyles of the local people in all walks of life, as well as into the cultural milieu in which she encounters them. It is not that she does not see the dark side, i.e. the poverty, the dirt, and the ignorance that continue to breed a cruel chauvinism and a pervasive inertia into a people struggling to catch up to the demands of overpopulation and the 21^st century. Rather, she is willing to look beyond the darkness to embrace and celebrate the light that is the warmth, generosity, patience, hospitality, and spirituality of a people who have learned the hard way to survive and find joy against sometimes overwhelming odds. Ginda sees and shares, in portraits of words and paint, the poetry in the psyches and the terrain of those who greet one another with "Sabah el Kheir" and respond with "Sabah Ennoor."

If you want to share with your friends and families in your home countries what it is really like to live in Egypt, I recommend Morning of Light.