Family Reunion and Emotional Journey

Hi, I'm Mariam, a Lebanese living in Israel.

Where are we going today?

For 26 years, I didn't know what it meant to have cousins

and relatives my age, to travel together, laugh together, crowd

together, and live simple family moments. And this year,

I finally fulfilled my dream, and we traveled together to

Greece, and we stayed in this stunning village that

honestly reminded me of Dibil. And just like that, I felt like I was back

to childhood in my village, with my family around me, and it was

something very emotional, honestly. Greece is so beautiful

and reminds us a lot of Lebanon, so it was nice to see how we bonded

as if we were trying to make up for 26

years of not seeing each other in this week that we spent

together. I had already met them in Australia,

but my siblings had never seen them. So it was very

moving to see how we were truly

having the best time together. What saddens

me most is that we missed out on 26 years of

our lives without getting to live these beautiful moments.

Family moments with our cousins and

maternal cousins, our grandfathers, and our grandmothers.

And like me, many families are like this because of

our situation. At the end of this week, we celebrated my

birthday. And of course, like every year, my wish was that next

year,

I celebrate with all my family in Lebanon.