Days of My Life at School

I still remember my first day at school. My mother woke me at six o’clock in the morning and washed me. I was wearing new school clothes. It was a white and blue dress and back trousers, and black shoes. She brushed my hair and put in it a red ribbon. I ate my breakfast and went to my school.

I was running quickly without becoming tired although my school was so far away from my house. I was flying like a bird. When I saw the school I stopped for minutes and took a good look. It was a fantastic place. It was a small and old building. It was on the mountain, and there were other mountains behind; and there were trees and the sunrise, and the grass was green. There were no walls around it. It was very beautiful for me.

It was a mix between girls and boys. I made friends quickly. The first subject we had was Arabic and the next was Maths and Religion. The first day in Maths, my teacher told me to go to the board and write number five. Because I was small, short and thin, I couldn’t reach the chalkboard and write. My teacher carried me to the board and I wrote a big circle. My teacher laughed and looked at me. He said, can you write it small? Yes, I answered.

Now my age is twenty eight. I see that mountain now and laugh with crying eyes. It was the best days of my life. I loved all my teachers and they always loved me because I was a good and intelligent student for them.

When we were in Eighth Grade, we were ten boys and six girls. When we finished it we went to another school in another village. I missed my life at my first school and missed our teachers and my friends. None of my girl friends went to the new school. They sat at home. I was alone and the road was very far. It was boring, but I made new friends at the new school. It was a very big school and it was for girls, and the new teachers were all women. For me it was a new life at the high school but I changed my view of that life to be a good student. I was able to do that thanks to my God. I finished high school with a good grade.

K.S.Q

Life Before the Wall

Every Friday the old people go to Jerusalem. The women are over fifty, and the men are over sixty. In the past, anyone could go, every day. Before the checkpoints it took ten minutes to get from Abu Dis to Jerusalem, or a half hour walk. Jerusalem is not just a place; it is a holy city, the capital of Palestine. The messengers Mohammed, Mousa and Jesus visited Jerusalem. The people had ID for sixty seven years before the Wall was built and now only people with permission can travel there. They must pass through metal detectors. Their belongings must be put through an X-ray machine. The soldiers are moody. Sometimes they do not let people with permission through.

I love Jerusalem. Don’t ask me why? Or how? Or what?

Before the wall I could go to the 48 Lands and the sea with my family. Life was difficult before the wall. There were checkpoints in the streets and prisoners were taken from families. My father and two brothers were imprisoned, and many more of my relatives too. My mother stayed for ten years in Abu Dis at the orders of the Israelis. She wished to go to Haj, but she could not. Then, those who had been in prison could not travel to Jerusalem. Now, nobody can.

After the Wall was built, many people could not reach their work in Jerusalem and the 48 Lands. Unemployment increased. People could not access hospitals. Women gave birth to children in the street and at checkpoints. The Wall separated all families in Palestine and took the land and water in Jenin and Qualqilia. Olive trees were cut down to build settlements.

One day the Palestinians will damage the Wall, inshallah.

N.A