Day 7. Building
the walls (Monday)
It’s turning colder again and windy but at least it’s dry.
The ‘Khamsin’ has started, a dry and dusty wind that traditionally lasts 50
days. When we arrive at the build the valley is shrouded in dust. More bricks
need transporting from the level of the road down to the house. We are getting
very good and efficient at forming chains. We also transport buckets of water
and sand, to make cement for the walls. I have a go at mixing cement (with a
spade, not in one of those nice turning machines unfortunately), it is very
hard work but I enjoy it a lot.
I spend some time with the grandmother of the family,
Maryam. She has been to visit the build every single day without fail. She
appears down the road at about 9am, walking very slowly with her walking stick.
Someone helps her down the slope and finds a chair, out of the sun or wind if
possible. It’s a school day, so the older children are at school, but the
little ones are around and Wendy and I spend some time playing with them at
Maryam’s feet. We sing nursery rhymes and I use some of the empty water bottles
to collect stones, which we put inside to make rattles. They love this activity
and keep taking the stones in and out, then rattling some more. Maryam and I
smile a lot. I ask her about her dress, which is black with beautiful
embroidery down the front and sides. The dress was made by Maryam for her
wedding. It took four weeks, which I thought was quick considering the amount
of embroidery, but she says it was very slow and one of her daughters did one
in a week! She has had it all her life and will wear it till she dies. Then she
reaches inside her pocket and gives me a string of prayer beads. I need Marwan to translate
again to make sure they are a gift, which they are. It is a really special
thing to receive and I will treasure these beads always. They are now next to
my bed, together with a small olive wood cross that we were given recently at
our church. Both are used as aids to prayer, but in different faiths…
I find the crossing of religions in this project very
interesting, and it is changing me inside. Mostly the people we mix with are
Muslims, but I am learning a lot from them. They see the hand of God in
everything and frequently use words like ‘Insha’Allah (God willing) and Alhamdulillah (thank/praise God). These words
seem so close to what we use as Christians, and they are indeed also used by
Arab speaking Christians. I think we all worship the same God, in a different
way of course and I do not agree with everything Islam teaches by any means,
but there is a bond here that is very real.
In the afternoon we
go for a guided walk around the fields of Battir. Battir is a very ancient
village with beautiful agricultural terraces watered by a unique Roman era
irrigation system. There are also ancient graves and many caves. The village has
been nominated for UNESCO World Heritage status, but the separation wall and
nearby settlements threaten the terraces and the ancient way of agriculture.
The walk is one of the nicest I have ever done. We scramble through fields of
scented plants such as thyme, oregano and za’tar. Every step brings up their scent.
We see a very old cave, a roman grave and many terraces and olive groves. Our
guides are two of the Nema sons and two of the builders, who are all very
gallant and helpful if one of us needs a hand coming down a steep slope. It’s a
wonderful way to get closer to them and we form a bond with our guides
that is still kept going through Facebook links. (All the young Palestinian people
seem to be on Facebook and have smartphones).
In the evening we
visit Marwan’s family. We have a wonderful time seeing his menagerie (goats and
lots of birds), and meeting his wife and children. They are very welcoming and
we get served with lots of fruit and drinks, after which Marwan has a gift for
everyone: prayer beads or key rings. They are such generous and kind people,
and so unlike the stereotype ‘Palestinian terrorist’ portrayed in the media.
You never get told about this side of Palestine, which is of course the common,
ordinary side of this country full of kind, ordinary families. Nevertheless
Marwan has been in prison countless times and has been tortured frequently,
although he has not been part of any violence and since getting to know the Holy
Land Trust is a fervent advocate of non-violent resistance. All these people
want is to have their own state, to be able to decide their own affairs and be
able to get about without restrictions. Marwan’s children cannot travel outside
Palestine, and even travelling outside Bethlehem is problematic. They have
never seen the sea, even though it is so close, and their education will be
restricted to what is available in Bethlehem.
Everything we do,
however nice and positive , has this darker underside of restrictions,
oppression and lack of liberty. It is really hard for all of us in the group to
come to terms with this; and we are only ‘outsiders’, while they live with this
constantly. Having said that, one of the most amazing things about this trip is
that by our actions and
interactions with this community we are becoming part of them, at least a little. For the first
time I feel I am not just looking on from the outside, but experiencing in some
small way what they are going through.
Some more pictures
and videos:
Maryam giving me the
prayer beads, and below making rattles from plastic bottles with the children
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