Foreign affairs veteran and Cricket Board President Mohamed Faisal's book of poems in English language, 'In Between Dreams' was released on Saturday.
The first copy of the book was launched at a special ceremony held in Salt Cafe', Male', by Faisal and his family members.
At the ceremony, Faisal recalled his beginning as a poet, that he first started writing poetry during his school days.
He said he was always interested in reading books and wrote poems until he filled an 80-page monitor book during his school days.
He also mentioned that he actually published his first book of poems with his friends while he was studying at Majeedhiyya School, a teenager.
Foreign affairs veteran and Cricket Board President Mohamed Faisal speaks at the event held to unveil his book of poems 'In Between Dreams, September 13, 2025. (Sun Photo/Mohamed Afwan Solah)
He said it was those happy memories that encouraged him to continue writing poetry.
Faisal said he had the time to think deep and write poems when he was in school but now he said he writes poems completely differently.
He described how he composes poems by including interesting words that come to mind while he is engaged in various activities.
Faisal said many of his poems are related to themes of love. He also writes poems based on his own experiences and different things he sees. These include what he see’s in the news, he said.
In one of the poems in In Between Dreams, he describes the feelings of being in love, while another poem describes the imagery of a family breaking, from the child's perspective, he said.
He said humans usually want to keep their emotions safe and protected, but he believes everyone should share them at some point.
Former First Lady Fazna Ahmed attends the unveiling of Cricket Board President Mohamed Faisal's book of poems 'In Between Dreams. (Sun Photo/Mohamed Afwan Solah)
“I think it’s really important to talk to other people at some point, so if you’re a poet, one way to do that is to publish poetry. we talk a lot about mental issues now, and poetry is a way to talk about things like that as well".
Faisal said he started working on In Between Dreams during the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the global lockdown began while he was abroad on vacation and had to be quarantined at Fun Island Resort upon arrival to Maldives with his family.
“So most of the poems in In Between Dreams started during the COVID-19 pandemic, when I was writing one or two poems every day. It was a very productive time,” Faisal said.
After that, he made various alterations to his compositions over the past five years and decided to publish the book now, he said.
The ceremony was attended by former President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih’s wife Fazna Ahmed and Faisal's family and friends.
Faisal served as the Maldivian Ambassador to China from November 2014 to May 2024 and then as Additional Secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.