Learning About Mixed Love from the Loving Family
Forat asked to watch a movie about a couple arrested for violating a ban on interracial marriage. I wondered what she understood about our family. Falafel in the South…
I wrote a love story. Not yet in English.
This time I’m writing under my real name. To thank you and to let you know about my book, a love story about the occupation. Dear Readers, I want to…
Vaccinations arrive in North Carolina. Credit: Umm Forat
When It Comes to Vaccinations, Gaza is Better than the West Bank
Our daughter is enjoying sugary American food, but for her father, North Carolina brings something sweeter: a COVID-19 vaccine he wouldn’t yet get in Palestine. Eating Animals “Ima, which animal…
Leaving Palestine
We waited for hours, the children and I on one side of the checkpoint, Osama on the other, hoping to make it to the airport. Cleaning the refrigerator “I knew…
Buying Hanukkah Candles in Ramallah
“I am a Jew married to a Palestinian,” I told the supermarket man, with a smile that I hoped was courteous, pluralistic and also conversation-ending. I picked up Forat and…
Searching for a Safe Place in the West Bank for a Family Hike
Most deep natural pools in the West Bank are near settlements, and settlers have taken them over, by arriving there with guns or Israeli soldiers. Our relationship exposes my partner,…
Umm Forat
“I had to come a long way to be happy to meet you.”
Omar asked simply and directly about the Hebrew I spoke with my kids, saying that it’s not the fault of the language, but it’s associated with the occupation
‘Today We Must Dress in the Colors of the Palestinian Flag’
My daughter’s kindergarten is making a video about nationalities. It’s a complicated topic for us. Her father and I can’t even drive the same car I came home at 4…
When I Shout at My Daughter in Hebrew, It Reminds My Husband of Israeli Prison
I never consciously decided to speak Hebrew with my daughter, but it became a kind of connection between her and me, like our private language “Imaaaaaaa!” As usual, Forat awoke…
Israeli, Jewish, and Raising My Kids in Ramallah
After a year abroad, we came home to Ramallah. The children and I landed in Israel while Osama, my partner, had to fly into Jordan After a year in the…