Humans of the Refuge
Goodbyes
April 29, 2016
"I hate the fact that we never really said goodbye. If I knew that we are going to be gone for more than just a summer, I would have packed some more. I would have taken a moment to say a little goodbye."
"How long has it been now?"
"Almost two years. I wish I have pictures of my house, I really want to show it to you."
"Why don't you just describe it?"
"I will, but then I don't know if my home is still there. What if it was bombed? Do you think my toys and clothes are still there?"
Reyhanli, Turkey
Close Your Eyes
April 29, 2016
"Close your eyes, tell me where do you see yourself?"
"I see myself in Aleppo."
"Do you want to go back?"
"Oh, I wish I can go back, I wish I can go back right now."
Reyhanili, Turkey
Favorites
April 28, 2016
"So tell me about the best day that you have ever spent"
"I really don't have a favorite day, every single day spent back home was special. I would call any day a favorite one. "
Reyhanili, Turkey
On the Move
April 28, 2016
"We were packing to head to our summer house. That day the shelling was very heavy and by the time we were ready to leave, it started pouring on our neighborhood continuously so we left and somehow survived by a miracle."
"Were you able to make it to your summer house?"
"We actually never made it to our summer house, we kept on moving from a city to another. We would stay a while in a place, but then they will start bombing it, so we leave. We have been to many places, until finally we made it all the way out of Syria and in here."
Reyhanili, Turkey
Missing It All
April 27, 2016
"I remember my friends and neighbors. I remember my home. I didn't go a day without thinking about home. I even remember the soccer ball my neighbors and I used to play with. I also remember the days when the electricity used to cut off. We would tape the electronic bells of the houses in our neighborhood so that when the electricity is back on, the bells would sound and the sounds would fill the entire neighborhood. We used to laugh so hard on such nights, and I miss it all."
Reyhanili, Turkey