By Scott Latta's interview with Ahmad | Staff writer and Syrian refugee in Jordan
Ahmad, a Syrian refugee in Jordan had never worked in education, rather was in the cattle and cow trade all his life. This all changed when destruction hit his home and members of his family were killed. This was when when he decided to leave Syria.
He recently told Mercy Corps his story.
It was impossible to find security—the airstrikes left no woman, child, animal, or even tree safe. Bombs fell on anything. When part of my home was destroyed, I watched from afar as a truck came and carried away my remaining furniture.
I left Syria psychologically destroyed, and my financial situation was bad. I slept in the open on the Syrian border for 10 days until Jordan received us. They were good and kind. But I had never slept in a tent or even seen one assembled. With some people’s help, we built it on farmland and lived there among several other families.
In Syria, one of my hobbies was reading and drawing posters. I love reading and writing and I love being with children. When I sit with children, I feel like I am living in a different world. It’s like living a dream because children are pure.
Opening a small school to teach children started as a small idea. I said to my wife, “We have children, so why don’t we assemble them in one place to teach them and protect them from the heat of the sun?” My wife was very fond of the idea and encouraged me. “These children should be disciplined,” she said. It was just a simple idea, but we started to develop it, and when we decided to build the tent, we asked the families in our settlement to each pay a small amount. When we started, there wasn’t even furniture. Students sat on stones.
My goal was to teach them the basics: math, science, religion, Arabic, and English, so that when the day comes for them to enter public school, they will have an educational foundation. This is better than nothing. Public schools in Jordan won’t accept them at age 12 or 13 if they are not able to read or write.
We are close enough to the border that when I hear the bombs, particularly at night, I imagine I am there inside the explosions. Fortunately, here in the school, a great part of the stress and internal tension I have fades away. This school and these children are my safe haven. I feel like I am living in another world when I am here.
Everyday I try to think of new ideas. One day I asked the children to draw a picture of flowers, trees, or anything. Each one of them drew a picture from their imagination, and my prize to them was to hang them on the school walls. Everyone who comes here tells me they feel relaxed. My wish is to transfer my feelings to everyone who steps into this place.
We have something here that cannot be found elsewhere.
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All photos by Ezra Millstein
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