Welcome to Majd al-Kurum

Majd al-Kurum is where I live. It is a medium-sized, beautiful town with gently rolling hills blanketed with fig and olive trees. The strong smell of oil leaking out of pressed olives always reminds me of my home. Each time olive season comes in the fall, all the families head out to harvest the fruit. My dad and uncles put fla (nets) under the trees, then hit the trunks with sticks. Olives tumble down and my cousins and I stoop down to pick them up. My grandma makes food for us to eat while we rest in the cool shade of those trees. I have experienced a lot of conflict and violence. I always feel some level of fear. There is constant conflict between Zionists and Muslims. A recent violent period makes me feel sad and hopeless. During the last ten days of the month of Ramadan, attacks occurred at Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and a lot of people were injured. I was actually planning to visit the holy site with my friends but my mom said it was too dangerous for me to go with them. Despite the conflict, 100,000 Muslim people still gathered at Al-Aqsa, gathering there to eat, breakfast together, and enjoy each other’s company. Despite the hardships, I always feel so much warmth because my family, my friends, my village, and my people are very united.