Just a half an hour ago I got an email from a doctor friend in Baghdad whom I wrote just last night asking about their well-being. ” …we are always thinking that being not alone is a grace. We are passing hard times….the hot summer is not hotter than the fire inside our hearts from the chaos we are living and the tragic stories we are witnessing everyday.”
Writings by Cathy Breen
Letter from Cathy Breen, May 24 2010
Damascus, Syria
May 24, 2010
The other day an article caught my attention while I was at the internet shop I frequent—“In Baghdad Ruins, Remains of a Cultural Bridge.” (NY Times, May 21, 2010, Anthony Shadid) I printed the article out to take back to my room.
Letter from Cathy Breen, May 16 2010
Damascus, Syria
May 16, 2010
Dear Friends,
“Ten years ago everyone dreamed about going to America.” The words of an Iraqi friend to me recently. But this is no longer the case. Quite the contrary as a matter of fact. Iraqis who have been resettled to the U.S. have been returning to Syria and Iraq as the conditions there have been unbearable. No work to be found, benefits cut, etc. Iraqis here and in Jordan are quite aware of such situations, but they are caught in a bind. The U.S. is the only show in town so to speak; their quotas for Iraqi refugees far surpass those of other countries.
Letter from Cathy Breen, May 15 2010
Damascus, Syria
May 15, 2010
Dear Friends,
Last week I visited a family I met last year. They were rejected by Homeland Security for resettlement to the U.S. in March of 2009. They received a form letter with a check in the box “credibility.” Translated this means “we don’t believe your story.” The family told me that during the interview for resettlement the Department of Homeland Security officer repeatedly said “good, good” after each question, even telling them that as far as he was concerned they would be accepted.
Cathy Breen Writes from Damascus
Damascus, Syria
May 8th, 2010
Dear Friends,
I wish I could transport you to be here with me. It has turned hot, but this morning is still blissfully pleasant. But it is still early morning, 6:30am, and in two hours the sun will be beating down. I have a third floor room in an old rather tumbling down house in the old city on Straight Street. Yes, it is the same street that is mentioned in our scriptures where Paul was healed from his blindness after an encounter with God on the road to Damascus. As I write you, I am thinking about how poor my own vision has become. The glaring unforgiving sun here doesn’t help the cataract in my right eye at all. I am cautious as I descend the steep cement stairs to the one bathroom in the courtyard below.
Iraqi Refugees and Resettlement
Damascus, Syria
June 26, 2009
Cathy Breen with Iraqi Child in SyriaDear Friends,
My time in Syria is coming to a close. Tomorrow I will head to Jordan for a couple of days and then back to the big apple on July 1st. A final session with UNHCR the other day brought a sense of closure in some ways, as I was able to discuss concerns and turn over concrete “cases” for their consideration. We spoke of the increasingly desperate situation of Iraqi refugees here, one hidden from the world by the lack of media coverage. But we also acknowledged the many small miracles and victories we continue to witness.
Gifts
Damascus, Syria
June 16, 2009
Middle Eastern people are by nature gift givers. My room and the refrigerator outside on the patio attest to this. The homemade yogurt from Namir’s family and the jar of cherry jam from Sara, mother of four; are in the process of being consumed. However, the large oil painting from 16 year old Noor, a bar of soap carved into the shape of a foot by little Anfal and a large Arabic bible are just a few of the lasting items so lovingly given to me.
Did You or Did You Not Cook?
Damascus, Syria
May 19, 2009
Did you or did you not cook?
It seems like such a harmless question, but the simple yes or no answer to that question can determine the fate of an Iraqi family longing to join their relatives in the United States.
Mustafa and Josh
Damascus, Syria
May 17, 2009
I said laughingly to Josh “You have a shadow.” When he wasn’t chasing after the frisbee, 5 year old Mustafa kept taking his hand. It was such a sweet gesture.
Mustafa and Josh
I met Josh a few days ago over tea. He had contacted me by email, asking if we could get together. Not only do we know many of the same people in the peace movement, but I felt an instant kinship with this gentle yet intense young man from Oregon. Josh has spent a good deal of time in Palestine over the last years, and is currently continuing his Arabic study in Damascus. We spoke of many things, and by chance I mentioned a dear Iraqi family I had been just been with.
