Write-Place

  The Nakba - the "disaster" or "catastrophe" was the destruction of Palestinian society and homeland in 1948 and the permanent displacement of Palestinian Arabs. The term is used to describe both the events of 1948 and the ongoing occupation of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip, as well as their displacement in refugee camps throughout the region and beyond. The Nakba was the result of the partition of Mandatory Palestine after World War Two ended as the United Nations and world powers realigned the borders of the Middle East.  The following story is by Neveen Abuelola, my 'step -niece' through marriage. I am reblogging this from when she first wrote it, around 2012 I am Neveen. I am Palestinian. This is my sto­­ry. This is the Palestinian Story. I'd like to take you back to 64 years ago, to the fertile rolling hills of Palestine. To the land of orange, lemon and olive trees, to around mid May1948. My Grandmother, heavily pregnant qu...

I have been thinking about the topic of the title I have given to this post for some time, and thought that today being   World Mental Health Day  I thought that I ought to at least attempt to put my thoughts into words and share them. "World Mental Health Day is a day to talk about mental health and show everyone that mental health matters. It's also a day to let people know that it's ok to ask for help, no matter what you're going through. The theme this year highlights 'mental health as a universal human right ' which means working towards good mental health for all."  Apart from some specific times in my life when I felt that I wasn’t quite “me”, I’ve hardly ever been one to think twice about starting up a conversation with a stranger.  The times I refer to when I have not been able to instigate a repartee, have generally been during illness of some sort – which, touch wood, I am relatively free from, as I write.      Whether this is a good t...