Palestine's Third Generation of Occupation

Tell me, readers, what did she ever do to anybody, huh?

"PALESTINE REMEMBERED ~~ THE NAKBA, THREE GENERATIONS LATER

April 16, 2008 at 8:14 am (Israel, Nakba, Palestine)

A Gaza Diary: Nakba for Me

Najwa Sheikh

In a few weeks, Palestinians the world over will commemorate their Nakba (catastrophe) — the loss of their homelands, their identity, dignity and their life. Many countries and organizations that are interested in the Palestinian dilemma will help in this commemoration. The Nakba for them is to speak about the sufferings and loss of a nation, to tell stories from those who witnessed the real event and fled from their homeland with one hope — that one day they will return. As a third generation Palestinian, the Nakba to me is different in terms of the pain and suffering it holds. I am totally aware of the great loss that my grandparents, my parents have to experience when they fled from their homeland in 1948. I know how devastating it is to lose the place that gives you all the feelings of security, and the identity that tells who you really are. The pain that my grandparents held during the years of their life in the camp until they died with their only wish to see their home again is heart breaking. The dreams that my father holds on behalf of his parents, and his own dreams of returning back home, is also heart breaking. But for me, the Nabka is more than fleeing the homeland, and losing your identity. It is not having a single memory of the homeland that once was for your grandparents, and your parents. It is not having anything to tell your children, like the taste of your lands’ fruits, the smell of its sand, about stories and experiences with your people...."

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