Alissa Everett
Ami Gaston
C. Eduardo Vargas
Kathryn Pilkington
Kimberly Schultz
Kathryn Schulz
Megan Hoelle
Michael Jordan
Paul Emerson
Timothy Frakes
An Iraqi family waiting for final approval for resettlement to the United States, Amman, Jordan. Amir worked in Iraq for USAID for several years. After serious threats against his wife and family, he spoke to his boss who transferred him to USAID’s office in Amman where he worked for two years. For Amir and his family, after his being accused of collaborating with the foreign invaders, a return to Iraq would mean certain death. Several years later, the family is still awaiting resettlement and has promises that it will come soon. Insh’allah.
These are just some of the sentiments that we have gathered from the many stories shared with us from the Iraqi refugee families that we have met. All of them have been poignant. All painful. All waiting…hoping…wishing for home – to start life again in a place that offers the promise of peace & tranquility as well as a means to care for themselves and their families – if they still have one.
These beautiful souls just starting out on this life journey – all of whom have seen and heard atrocities I cannot even begin to imagine – these are the ones that slowly began to smile from ear to ear as they merrily played the drum with me, giggled when we danced the hokey pokey, and cackled uproariously when we tried with all of our might to learn from them how to say drum, shaker, bells, eggplant, & pumpkin in Arabic.
These sweet little ones are the key to keeping this culture alive. They are the ones that hold the delicate thread of their ancestry, their traditions, and their culture, and although many of them have yet to receive these gifts because it is too painful for their parents to recount, they still carry the desire to play, laugh, learn, & mostly – LOVE.
As our music & dance workshop with the kids at the health clinic came to a close today, I heard them continuing to sing the songs that they had learned with eager ease. All of the parents and the clinic social workers were amazed at the way that all of them stayed so attentive and joyful – particularly one child in a wheelchair, who normally remains disengaged due to his physical condition, but bounced and rocked with glee today as we all danced around him, gave him instruments to play, and included him in the fun.
All in all, to quote my colleague Eduardo Vargas, one of the co-directors of this trip, “No matter what else happens today, the smiles alone on the faces of these children, makes it a mighty fine day”.
Finally, we talked with that woman’s sister. She still lives in Baghdad but is staying in Lebanon to undergo cancer treatments.