Mahmood reflects on a painting of great significance to him:
The Lady of Shalott was painted by John William Waterhouse (1849-1917). It illustrates lines from part four of Lord Alfred Tennyson’s poem "The Lady of Shalott."
The lonely Lady of Shalott in her seclusion was in agony, looking through her window at the hills and trees beyond, haunted by reflections in her mirror, walking in her bower, from end to end, aimlessly. Day after day this agony recurred, endlessly it seemed. She continued weaving the web, dreaming of her gallant knight, Lancelot of Camelot.
Longing could be fatal, and loneliness could be fatal too. To escape from this longing and loneliness pressing hard on her mind and chest, she ran to the boat at the bank of the river, with her web, and let the boat float in the river to Camelot, to meet her knight Sir Lancelot.
