By Oxfam* – July 2014 — Syrian refugees in Northern Lebanon, reminisce on how they celebrated Eid – the festivity that marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan – back home. They reflect on how much they’ve lost, but also how lucky they feel compared to other refugees living in even more dire circumstances, who are, for example, forced to send young children out to work in order to survive.
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Dearest mother,
As I write this letter, I don’t know where you are in Syria or how you are doing.
Last time we spoke was seven months ago. You’ve been on my mind every day, especially during the holy month of Ramadan.
I’m sitting in our small room in Northern Lebanon.
On the wall, my daughter Amal’s new dress hangs next to my only two shirts. Its ruffled sleeves and colorful print are the only reminder that it is the festival of Eid and that we are about to celebrate the end of Ramadan.
What is there to celebrate?
Nothing.
I lost you, my sweet mother, and I lost my homeland. My heart is heavy with sorrow and my eyes well with tears when I lie at night under the hot corrugated steel roof and dream of the Eids we have celebrated back home.
Remember mother the smell of freshly baked maamul and karabeej (traditional Middle Eastern sweets) that filled the house on the eve of Eid?
HUMAN WRONGS WATCH 