Salma El Kordy
Translated from Arabic the name Salma means peace and safety. That’s what Salma El Kordy, a 19-year-old girl from Cairo, Egypt, values most in her life.
“If you ask my friends to describe me, they will say that I´m a person that stays away from drama. I don’t like to stress myself out. I’m very carefree.”
Salma’s peace-loving spirit brought her into the world of yoga and meditation. She first encountered the art of yoga at a training camp a year ago. It didn’t take Salma long to fall in love with yoga. Today she is a certified teacher and she helps others regain their inner peace.
“What I’m most proud of today is that I’m a yoga teacher. My mat is my canvas and yoga is my art. My students are my main inspiration. It’s always a pleasure to help them out and watch them become better and better,” Salma says with big excitement.
Except on a yoga mat, one can see Salma on a magazine cover. She is a part-time model with a successful career behind her back. She features in advertising campaigns and photo shoots for Cairo-based clothing lines. Fashion occupies a big part of Salma’s time but she is not really into it.
“Modeling is not my thing. I just do it for the sake of being financially independent. I don’t like how superficial the fashion industry is. I don’t like the image it promotes. I truly prefer yoga more,” she says.
Even though Salma puts a lot of energy into yoga and fashion, there is nothing that can replace her main priority, her education. Salma is a second-year student at the American University in Cairo (AUC). She is a big fan of the American system of education. She believes that it brings out the best in her. Her studies are a colorful mixture of integrated marketing, business and theater.
“What I love most about my university is the opportunity to try a variety of majors. That’s the best about the liberal arts education, you’re free to choose and experiment,” she says.
Salma’s plans for the future go beyond her university degree. She dreams about opening a yoga studio and developing in the field of health and fitness.
“I truly hope that the skills I acquire in university will help me create a brand name for myself and succeed.”
Salma is not certain whether her career goals will remain the same in 10 years. What she is certain about is that she can’t imagine herself living abroad. Her heart belongs to Egypt.
“Egypt is a beautiful country with diverse resources. However, most Egyptians tend to forget how unique Egypt is. I love my country but I don’t like the people. The people treat it like trash,” Salma says. Her voice quavers with anger.
Salma believes that the main problem of her compatriots is their lack of education. According to her, education is a power that opens your eyes and helps you understand the political reality better.
“Honestly, right now the political standing in Egypt is not the best. The middle class disappeared and now you’re either poor or rich. The problem with the poor people is that they are uneducated. You can easily trick them. If you offer them rice or bread, they will support you no matter what,” she says, as she lowers her voice.
Salma hasn’t felt threatened by the politics in her country until recently. A few months ago Cairo police forces initiated a mass inspection of the mobile phones of random passers-by. Following the orders of the government, police officers were stopping people and checking their personal messages. If someone had talked negatively about the current president, he/she was being sent straight to jail.
“One of my friends got imprisoned. A professor from AUC was also affected. At that time I was afraid that the same would happen to me, too,” she says with a trembling voice.
Despite the ongoing events, Salma is optimistic that better times await Egypt and the world. She believes that the global change, we all strive to achieve, begins with something as simple as appreciating the Mother Nature more. Salma underlines the importance of living at peace with the environment. She calls for kindness and collective responsibility.
“What you give to the environment always comes back to you. Give it love and love will come your way!”
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Yoana Blagova studies journalism and political science at the American University in Bulgaria. This story was written as part of a collaborative project created during the AMICAL Conference in Kuwait in January 2020. Professor Kim Fox of AUC and Professor Laura Kelly of AUBG teamed their students to make audio and magazine stories and to learn about each other’s daily lives.
