Mes Amis Spring 2011 - Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart

Lessons learned
on an amazing day in Bethlehem
Some travel stories have less to do with the sights you
see and more to do with the people you encounter
along the way. Occasionally, these people are so
inspiring you can’t believe you really met them.
Early morning of our second day in Bethlehem, I woke up
in (my homestay host) Claire's house to look outside and see
the Separation Wall. The streets were so empty I let myself be
silently led to sit tight with a caged feeling. Claire Anastas'
house happened to be closest to the main checkpoint and
wall separating Bethlehem and jerusalem. you cannot imagine
the frustration I felt as the only person in the house awake
at 2:00 a.m.
I spent the next three hours processing and did not dare to
speak at all. I only marveled at the art on the wall. The Israeli
government would never allow graffiti on their side, but
whenever foreigners come to Bethlehem, they leave a piece
of their hearts on the wall. The artwork is incredible, and before
this the only Banksy, majd Abdel Hamid or ron English work
I had seen was in books. I pored over iconic graffiti that literally
covered the premises and laughed out loud when I realized that
some of the art brought harmless humor. I seriously wondered
if detail in some art was a wink from the artist on how they
really felt about what they were painting. It's amazing how
art—be it written, spoken or painted—can bring light and life
to hard situations.
later that day, our group went to the Wi'am Palestinian Conflict
resolution Center. The plan was to mingle with people our own
age. Based on the recommendation of the other girls, I dressed
in my best grown-up clothes and prepared to meet some
university students. We walked from Claire's house along the
wall to the center, where we were greeted by the staff. The
hospitality was comforting, and most of us felt confident
enough to ask pressing questions about the conflict.
This was no longer just a postcard, movie or book perspective
for me. I was meeting people who lived the conflict every day.
Even Claire's two daughters, Oriana and Christy, had lived
through the second intefadeh and told stories of waking up to
guns pointed at their heads and of how, on many occasions,
they escaped death. It's hard to sit with that as an outsider.
4 Mes Amis Spring 2011
By Shireen Nori ’12
I can't imagine how it must have been for them. We spoke with
Zoughbi, the founder of the Wi'am Center, and Usama Nicola,
the citizen diplomacy coordinator. Their stories sounded like
scenes of a movie. "Once they held me at a checkpoint for up to
4 hours.” “I've been robbed of my civil rights.” “I'm just like you;
I am trying to make a living and enjoy my life in peace.” This
isn't something we hear every day—I'm sure of it.
Once the university students arrived, I felt underdressed and
unsure about whether or not it was my scene but proceeded
onward. After a short icebreaker to integrate our group and the
university group, we split up into smaller groups to get to know
one another on a more intimate level. In our group, we mingled
specifically with two people: Khader mousa, a lawyer right out
of University of Bethlehem, and roula Salman, a master’s
student who also happened to be interning as the accountant at
the Wi'am Center. At 6-foot-1, Khader looked like a male model
straight out of a magazine. roula was a beautiful woman with
short dark hair. Impeccably dressed in high heels and an elegant
peacoat, her scan of our travel clothes made us feel out of place,
yet her personality was inviting.
“So, what do you want to ask us?” she asked.
Kaya and I exchanged glances as we attempted to come up with
a single question to represent the hundred we had.
“The media puts such a bad spin on Israel that it’s hard
to break past those barriers if you’ve never been there. I
hope that I’m able to break down that barrier … even if
only a little.” – Taylor Deegan-Williams ’13