Redwan Adalat - Humans of Kurdistan

in Humans of South

“I knew that education wasn't made for me, so I decided to quit school and start working. Initially, I was working for a barber and I liked cutting hair myself. I continued working until I was able to open a barber shop, but I had to close it down after a while due to some problems. I tried other jobs, but none of them worked out, they were not what I expected. Then, I decided to move out of the country illegally, and again I faced many obstacles that stopped me from going. Then I went back to my first job and once again I was able to open another barber shop. I have a lot of goals I want to achieve, at the same time there are a lot of obstacles, but I will never stop, I will keep going. The most important thing is to constantly remind yourself that you can do it.” ...

Oct 29 2020

October 29, 2020

“I remember that I used to love singing as a kid, I used to go in front of my room's mirror acting as a singer on a stage, using anything in front of me as a microphone. Once I got older, I knew that I liked working in the media as well, and felt that it was made for me. As a youngster I stopped learning Saz and music for personal reasons and started studying Media and Journalism in college, then I started studying masters while working in the media. Nevertheless, I have been singing professionally for a couple of years. Now I understand that you should never let your childhood dreams go because even if you let them go, they will never let you go.” ...

Oct 29 2020

October 29, 2020

“I was always dreaming of being accepted in college. I was very happy when I went to school the first day, I studied really hard. I went to high school and was determined to get good grades. Some time before my final exams I got into a car accident on my way to school, I was injured and taken to the hospital. I was not able to participate in the final exams. I stayed in the hospital for a while until I was better, but my mental health was still bad, and one year of education was wasted. I was very sad seeing all of my friends being accepted in college, not being able to join them. However, I didn't stop there and decided to get back to school the next year. Despite the war, and COVID19 that halted everything around the world, I had a strong will, I participated in the final exams and finally achieved my lifelong dream. I now study Economics.” ...

Oct 28 2020

October 28, 2020

“Life used to be very difficult. Back then, people used to work ten times more than they do now, but people now have better lives; they used to move logs or heavy items using their own hands or an animal, but it is different now. Nevertheless, people were happy back then despite the hard work, and now it is the opposite, easy life but an unhappy one. Nowadays, even people's hearts have hardened. We rarely ate without having guests, but now it seems as our village is unwelcoming of guests. If we were twenty to thirty houses in a village, whenever someone visited, they would have thought that we were all one family due to everyone being so close together.” ...

Oct 28 2020

October 28, 2020

“I have been living in Qamishli for five years, I am a Business and Economics student here. I am also a photographer in a center that produces documentary photos and videos. Four years ago, I started photography and I really liked it, then I participated in an advanced course of photography.We went to all the cities in Rojava, from Derik to Afrin. We took photos of soldiers and the nature, as well as anything related to Rojava's culture. We opened an exhibition that hosted a hundred photos, we also produced several documentaries about Afrin's movements, a village that only women live in, and many more.” ...

Oct 27 2020

October 27, 2020

“I have done several types of works on wood, such as designing, engraving, and making kids' toys with wood, as well as a number of crafts. However, pyrography is my favorite. I was in a pyrography exhibition, and a photographer asked me why I don't take the photos that are in my imagination, and so when I first started photography, I did really well because the things that I couldn't do with pyrography I was doing with photography. Reading also have had a big impact on me, whenever I see a meaningful line, I have always tried to photograph it.” ...

Oct 27 2020

October 27, 2020

in Humans of South

“I have been a barber for more than 11 years. Most of my relatives and even myself have learned to cut hair from one of my brothers. I alone have taught about 80 people, and despite the fact that it makes me very happy to teach people, I have done it also for the sake of God. I am also very happy that my students have been loyal to me; when I visit them, they still treat me as their teacher and are even a bit shy when I watch them working. I have never told a customer how much money I want or tell them what they have given me is not enough. I am convinced of whatever I get, and I believe that what I have earned is due to how I have been content with what I have.” ...

Oct 26 2020

October 26, 2020

“I have never liked people who are weak, or people who cannot decide for themselves, and the people who don't finish what they start. There are people that have a history of numerous unfinished projects. I don't remember if I have started something and haven't finished it or have shown weakness. Even at this age, I try my hardest to work so that these young people who work at the Cafeterias are stay employed. I hope that what I have built now will continue after I die. In the end, when you think about your past you must have something that you're proud of, that you can say I have achieved these things and have worked to earn what I deserve.” ...

Oct 26 2020

October 26, 2020

in Humans of South

“I used to think that guitars were only used in fights and was specific to fights when I was watching movies about cowboys and the wild west. Even though I am an architect and have worked as an architect for a while, but I chose to learn playing guitar. Now that I am a guitar player, I think differently from how I used to think about guitars. Now I am a kindergarten teacher, I play the guitar for the kids and dance with them, we do Samba and Flamenco. We dance and move around and have fun. When I see the kids, I know what I have missed as a kid, and to compensate myself for that sometimes I want all of my body to become ears to enjoy music and songs.” ...

Oct 25 2020

October 25, 2020

“When I started reading the old books about the foundation of music, I went all the way to even read about the Pharos and the Meds. Something that grabbed my attention was that they had used music to treat illnesses. I went deeper into this, and started treating illnesses myself playing a violin because it is an instrument that touches your soul and gives you peace. I have a friend that's always stressed, I once asked him to come and have a cup of coffee with me. When he came, I saw that his hands were shaking so I told him to close his eyes, I will play him some music and asked for his opinion. When I started playing, I noticed his stress getting less, and I was sure that music can treat illnesses indeed. I researched more about it and saw that there are centers in Japan, United States, and even Dubai that work on healing through music. I can diagnose people through seeing their eyes and feeling their pulse, and then play them a piece of music.” ...

Oct 25 2020

October 25, 2020