The Farns: More Bad News From Syria

Thursday, 31 October 2013

More Bad News From Syria

Here is a series of emails from my friend Areen, still stuck in Damascus, still suffering beyond anything I can imagine. Her husband is still in Egypt where he fled to get out of military service, so she is all alone and frightened trying to take care of her two young sons. I wish more than anything I could help her somehow but it is illegal for Americans to send money to Syria right now with all the sanctions. All I can do is pray that she will be safe and have the strength to continue on...

Areen Alali
Hello How are you doing We're fine until today In the last week, things were Kudsia (area or neighborhood) near our house very bad
Were violent clashes between factions of the opposition Free families from the army fought each other It was a terrifying night for me and the kids Before yesterday, a mortar shell landed near the kids school near the Iraqi embassy area Maliki School and broken windows and burned car The shell near the Chinese Embassy which is close to the school

10/2, 12:32am Areen Alali
The situation in Syria is nothing more than genocide Extermination of the people By all parties Salafis Daash and Nusrat Islam and the army free and regular army All kill We see death everywhere

We've become afraid of everything all the other accused of blasphemy and treason We victim of stupidity opposition and subtle system Who could make the opposition Fighting itself

I love you too Greetings to you from my kids When I need something I have God And you

مع السلامة
October 2
10/2, 9:40pm

Joyce Stuart Farnsworth

I know I was reading about the numbers of dead just the other day. I can not believe how many people who have now been killed. It is terrible. Will it ever end? I dreamed about Syria again last night. I am always thinking of you Areen. I always wear a ring on my right hand that I bought in Damascus so I will not forget about you and Syria. It is always with me. You are always in my thoughts and prayers. Be strong for your children. They need you.
October 11
10/11, 12:06pm

Areen Alali

Hello dear Joyce How are you and how children I hope that's okay I am very sick I went to the doctor (There are no doctors in Syria, mostly traveled out of the country) The doctor said I need to work fast surgeons I have a tumor in the uterus This causes severe bleeding during menstruation And must quickly lumpectomy But the physical conditions is currently not hear me Because of health insurance in the bank canceled since the beginning of the crisis in Syria Operation cost more than
$1000 I was waiting for the return of health insurance, but the government did not return pray God to protect me for my children
سلام
October 15
10/15, 10:54am

Areen Alali

Dear Joyce We spent a terrifying night flight was restless The shelling did not stop So far We were not allowed to leave the Kudsia (neighborhood or area) because the army closed all entrances to Damascus The Eid al-Adha festival sad There is no joy or pleasure At all events happy eid adha
October 18
10/18, 2:50pm

Areen Alali

We did not celebrate the holiday Because the electricity remained cut off for long periods of time And water as well as I'm tired lot and sick and finally found a doctor and said to be of surgery So I decided to do a wound

i decided to do the surgery
October 21
10/21, 12:13pm

Areen Alali

Backtracked on the decision of the surgical procedure, because the amount of money is not enough for surgeons I am very tired So I lost part of my income because of the majd (her husband) travel He had a loan installments Become of my salary paid This did nothing left to live in. I'm unhappy not because of lack of money but because of my fear on my kids I hope that you can help me And I promise you that I will seek to pay off all the amount I receive when conditions improve
10/27, 11:53am

Areen Alali

We are from fifteen days trapped in Kudsia we could not exit and entry And are not allowed to enter the food and bread No gas or diesel None Transportation I went outto day because the children have exams through the houses of the Republican Guard after recording my car and my name and my identity The way it took two hours and it does not exceed the 10 kilometer The situation is tragic We do not know when it ends Become piles of garbage and flies spread
10/27, 11:55am

Areen Alali

I forgot the pain and illness due Trov we are going through Pray for us
Wednesday
10/30, 9:39am

Areen Alali

Dear Joyce I'm tired tired My heart and spiritual fatigue weakened I was unable to secure my children I hope you help if you can send a sum of money to the glory which will send it to me I do not have shelter or aid, only you The Kudsia trapping far Possible that bombing this week The system has closed all the roads with sand bags and put the army On the other hand, the opposition refuses to surrender I'm sorry to ask for money But you are my friend and only offered assistance Even the glory has no money is in a very bad situation, a patient with anemia because he does not eat well and sad and lonely I am of the Syrian people oppressed and unhappy people Thank you in advance for your help
*****************************************************

I dream that I am in Syria several times a week. I wish more than anything I could help my friend Areen. I am so sad to hear how much she is suffering not only from war but now from some physical ailment. I cannot imagine the pressure of looking after two young sons in such a situation with no husband around for help and support. How she is feeding herself and her sons, I do not know. I am not even sure if she is still in her house in Damascus now. I feel so helpless and sad for her. Joyce

No comments:

Books I Have Read Recently

(Let me know what books you have read recently or what your favorite book(s) is. I am always looking for a good book. Here are a few I have read.)

-The Red Tent by Anita Diamant

-Pope Joan by Donna Wolfolk Cross
(Definitely one of my favorites)

-Men to Match my Mountains by Irving Stone

-Life of Pi by Yann Martel

-The DaVinci Code by Dan Brown

-Leap of Faith: Memoirs of an Unexpected Life by Queen Noor of Jordan

--Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden
(This is one of my favorite books.)

-Those Who Love by Irving Stone
(This is a book about Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams. It was an enlightening read.)

-I Love You Ronnie by Nancy Reagan

--The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold
(I didn't like this book.)

--The Alchemist by Paul Coelho
(I liked this book when I read it several years ago but when I recently re-read it, I did not like it. I guess my tastes have changed.)

-The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh
(Begins in 1885, with the British invasion of Mandalay and the capture of the Burmese king and queen, and encompassing over 100 years to modern-day India and Burma (Myanmar). It was a great read.)

--The Peddler’s Grandson; Growing up Jewish in Mississippi by Edward Cohen

-Brick Lane by Monica Ali
(I liked this book a lot except for the middle part where you are reading a bunch of letters written in poor English. I could have done without that.)

-Nine Parts of Desire by Geraldine Brooks

-Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
(I saw the movie and loved it. It stars Queen Latifah as August and she is great!)

--Power and Glory by Adam Nicolson

--How To Run a Traditional Jewish Household by Blu Greenberg

-Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austin

-The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith

-Songs of Innocence and of Experience by William Blake

-The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
(This is a very thrilling read. I could not put it down. It may not be for everyone though.)

-Watching the English: The Hidden Rules of English Behavior
by Kate Fox

-The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom and John Scherrill

-Girl with the Pearl Earring by Tracy Chevalier

-Atonement by Ian McEwan
(A very intriguing book and I loved the movie, even though Kiera Knightley was the star.)

-Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

--The Constant Princess by Philippa Gregory
(Great book about Katherine of Aragon, King Henry VIII's first wife)

--The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory
(A book about Ann Boleyn - King Henry VIII's second wife)

-The Boleyn Inheritance by Philippa Gregory
(This one is about King Henry VIII's fourth and fifth wives - Anne of Cleves and Katherine Howard.)

-The Queen's Fool by Philippa Gregory
(This book is about Queen Mary, Katherine of Aragon's daughter, and the Queen-to-be Elizabeth, Anne Boleyn's daughter. There is also a fictional character Hannah. I loved it!)

-Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach

-The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
(A great overview of recent Afghan history. Check out the bookseller's rebuttal book published this year.)

-Virgins of Paradise by Barbara Wood
(I loved this book. It focuses on an Egyptian family from the 1940s to the present. It was a really good look at Egyptian culture and politics as they have changed through the years.)

-A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini

-The Chosen by Chaim Potok
(This is a good look at Jewish life. I liked reading the history of the formation of the state of Israel and the different reactions of various Jews throughout the book.)

--The Painted Veil by W. Somerset Maugham

--The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner

-Children: The Challenge by Rudolf Dreikurs, M.D.
(I am still in the process of reading this book)

-The Audacity of Hope by Barack Obama
(I admit, I skimmed this. It was long with too much political rhetoric for my taste.)

--The Hours by Michael Cunningham
(I didn't like this book, I wouldn't recommend it.)

-The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
(This was an amazing book. I could have read it in one night, easily. I could not put it down. It is about an innocent boy living outside the fence of a concentration camp.)

-David O. McKay and The Rise of Modern Mormonism by Gregory Prince and WM. Robert Wright

-The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls
(I loved this book!)

-1-2-3 Magic: Effective Discipline for Children 2-12 by Thomas W. Phelan
(I have been doing this with Abby and it works like "magic!" I even went to a lecture and heard the author speak about the method and it is great!)

-Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi

-They Dare to Speak Out by Paul Findley
(A book about an Illinois congressman who lost his seat to the Israeli Lobby.)

---“The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy” by John J. Mearsheimer, a political scientist at the University of Chicago, and Stephen M. Walt, a professor of international affairs at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard
(This is an excellent paper.)

--A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith
(I must admit, I did not finish this book. I found it very slow moving and a bit boring. I read about half and gave up.)

--The Zookeeper's Wife: A War Story by Diane Ackerman

--Stasiland; Stories From Behind the Berlin Wall by Anna Funder

--These is My Words: The Diary of Sarah Agnes Prine, 1881 - 1901 Arizona Territories by Nancy E. Turner
(This was a great escape. I loved it!)

--Escape by Carolyn Jessop (This is a disturbing book but a good read. It's all about a girl who escapes from a radical FLDS polygamist cult.)

--Tall Grass by Sandra Dallas

--The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
(Doctors took her cells without asking; those cells never died. They launched a medical revolution and a multimillion-dollar industry. More than twenty years later, her children found out. Their lives would never be the same.)

--FREE RANGE kids: How to Raise Safe, Self-Reliant Children (Without Going Nuts with Worry) by Lenore Skenazy

--Standing Alone: An American Woman's Struggle for the Soul of Islam by Asra Q. Nomani
(I loved this book. It is a very detailed account of the hajj and her take on Islam.)

--The Year That Changed The World: The Untold Story Behind the Fall of the Berlin Wall by Michael Meyer
(Meyer is a myth buster. The myth he tackles in this book is Americans' idea that communist regimes in the Cold War fell because of the United States' involvement. He is an excellent historian. I really enjoyed this book!)

--Hunting Eichmann: How a Band of Survivors and a Young Spy Agency Chased Down the World's Most Notorious Nazi by Neal Bascomb
(This book is now on my list of all-time favorites. It was thrilling and so fascinating. I highly recommend it!)

--Kabul Beauty School by Deborah Rodriguez
(I loved this book. It was adventurous and inspiring!)

--Someone Knows My Name By Lawrence Hill

--The Great Fire of London in the Apocalyptic Year 1666 By Neil Hanson
(I knew of the great fire in London but nothing else. This was very informative and kept my interest. It did get a little too detailed in parts though.)

--Son of Hamas: A Gripping Account of Terror, Betrayal, Political Intrigue and Unthinkable Choices By Mosab Hassan Yousef
(I like this book)

--Wild Swans: Three Daughters of China by Jung Chang
(Excellent book on the history of China and how it has changed over the century.)

--Hana's Suitcase by Karen Levine
(I would read this to my girls one day. It is a good look at the holocaust for children.)

--The Flying Carpet of Small Miracles by Hala Jaber

--Mengele: The Complete Story by Gerald Posner and John Ware

--Cutting For Stone by Abraham Verghese

--In the Garden of Beasts: Love, Terror, and an American Family in Hitler's Berlin by Erik Larson

--The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

--The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer

--Faith: Behind The Fences: A True Story of Survival In A Japanese Prison Camp by Kelly Dispirito Taylor

--Half Broke Horses by Jeannette Walls

--We Were Not Alone: How an LDS Family Survived World War II Berlin by Patricia Reece Roper

--The Paris Wife by Paula McLain

--Pillar of the Earth by Ken Follett

--Buddha in the Attic by Julie Otsuka

--The Cultural Revolution: A People's History 1962 - 1976 by Frank Dikotter

Books I Want to Read

--Terror in the Name of God: Why Religious Militants Kill by Jessica Stern
--Dark Star Safari: Overland from Cairo to Capetown by Paul Theroux
--Through a Glass Darkly: A Novel by Karleen Koen
--Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History by Laurel Thatcher Ulrich
--The Jewel of Medina by Sherry Jones
--Shanghai Girls by Lisa See
--The Art of Making Money: The Story of a Master Counterfeiter by Jason Kersten
--An Enduring Love: My Life with the Shah - A Memoir by Farah Pahlavi
--Reconciliation: Islam, Democracy, and the West by Benazir Bhutto
--City of Joy by Dominique Lapierre
--East of Eden by John Steinbeck
-- The Agony and the Ecstacy: A Biographical Novel of Michelangelo by Irving Stone
--One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
--Year of Wonders, a novel of the plague by Geraldine Brooks
--Ms. Ayaan Hirsi Ali's autobiography "Infidel"
--Call Me Anna: The Autobiography of Patty Duke by Patty Duke and Kenneth Turan
-- The War against the Jews: 1933-1945 by Lucy S. Dawidowicz
-- Alicia: My Story by Alicia Appleman-Jurman
--Vintage Sacks by neurologist/author Oliver Sacks.
--Helen Keller's "The Story of My Life"
--I Thought my Father was God (a collection of peoples' stories from NPR's National Story Project)
--Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides
--I, Elizabeth by Rosalind Miles