Maree Makom

Shelter
The furthermost table on the ground level of the
coffee house in Beit Jala, that spreads out over
three green terraces from which one can view the
entire valley, over and past the bypass road, and
the round hills embracing the highway from both
its sides, is set for two.
In several minutes the preparations will be
completed, and the camera will be left there alone,
a blind witness to a stuttering hand gesture; to a
solemn cliché stated in old Hebrew that will attempt
to erect a provisional word shield over the longing
and the admitting-in-advance of pending loss. And
a long time later, when the motion back and for th
of trays laden with plates of salads and meat and
with juice and beer bottles that will remain there
almost untouched, will subside somewhat, under
the brittle shell of a familiar conversation,
something will fasten to something, something will
be bared, raw. And in a moment, the image of M.
and L., seen through the camera struggling,
without the aid of a human eye, to hold on to the
s i g h t s w h i c h t h e s u n h a s a l r e a d y a l m o s t a b a n d o n e d,
will crumble red and disappear.
Shooting Site
Everest Café/Restaurant in Bet Jala, a small
city in the Bethlehem Governorate of the
West Bank, about 10 km south of Jerusalem
Following the Oslo accords (1993) Beit Jala
became part of the Palestinian Authority’s
semi-sovereign territory.
During the second Intifada (2000 Uprising)
Beit Jala was used by Tanzim militants, a
division of the Palestinian Fatah movement,
as a base for firing at the Jewish settlement
of Gilo built directly across from it.
Shooting Occasion
1998. Final production days of a video piece
by L. and R.
Characters
M. - A Palestinian man living in Deheishe who
is aiding the two women in the making of
their piece
L. - An Israeli videographer residing in Tel Aviv