Nadia Refaei
 ناديا الرفاعي



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Ten Thousand Trees in Heaven

Runway Journal issue #49: Bloom

Ed. Justine Youssef

Gianna Christella Hayes, Kashif Sheikh, Nadia Refaei, Quishile Charan, Safa El Samad, Sara ElYoughun, Z.D. Ihar, Wytchings & Carielyn Tunion






At one of the most southern points in the world, in my garden in Nipaluna, there is a fig tree. Despite not belonging here, it fruits abundantly each year and produces enough for me to share with family, friends and my community. Native to my paternal homeland of Syria (as well as Palestine), the fig is an ancient plant that is incredibly resilient, long living and, unlike most fruit trees, produces greater harvests the older it is.

Composed from fragments of documentation — as my father helps me to tend to the fig tree in my garden, preparing it for its winter sleep and showing me how to prepare cuttings to give to friends — as well as poetry, memory, speculation, and references from Islam and song, Ten thousand trees in heaven emerges as a dialogue between people, places and times. 

Collaboration with Nasser Al Refaei  

Experience the work: https://runway.org.au/issues/issue-49-bloom/nadia-refaei

About the issue
Guest-edited by Justine Youssef, Bloom asks how do we cultivate steadfastness while continuing to resist or rebuild amid relentless devastation? How do we nurture interdependence when dominant narratives enforce separation? What nourishes you enough to persist?

View the issue: https://runway.org.au/issues/issue-49-bloom