On Our Way Home-5

Eighty three years old, coming from a village near Bethlehem, Beit Jibreen, Rowaida Al Azzeh (Um Waleed) eventually settled in the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem. She lives in a relatively large house built after the family leveled its first UN-provided tiny concrete block house because of its small size. She's visited her ancestral village several times after expulsion in 1948 (when Israel imposed fewer restrictions on visitation), most recently in 1991. Her family (she was 12 years old) went first to Jericho, then Jordan. Despite many Arabs fleeing/immigrating to Jordan, her family wished to remain in the lands that resulted after partition and war because of friends and family. They settled in the camp. Despite anticipating sadness, she wants to see photos of her village—what remains.