Redwan Adalat - Humans of Kurdistan

“I have been working with concrete for 35 years, even though the work has gotten very hard for me because of my age, I still have to do it to make a living for my kids. My son study's in Damascus university and all of my kids go to school, and I am very proud of the fact that I make money enough for them to continue their education and provide a better life for them than my own life.During my younger years I could prepare about 30 meters of concrete, but now I can do about 10 meters at most. None of my friends work anymore, but I must continue to provide a living for my kids.” ...

Oct 23 2020

October 23, 2020

in Humans of East

“I have been selling the fruits and vegetables of my own farm on this street for twenty years to people who come to this village for a picnic. COVID-19 has affected the area now, people don't come as they used to. I hope by the time my fruits and vegetables are well grown, people start visiting again. My son sells fish, and also supplies fish to other sellers. My grandson is with me by day, he is with me more than he is with his parents.” ...

Oct 23 2020

October 23, 2020

in Humans of South

“When I was a student, I really liked the scientific lessons, but I only got 63/100 in the twelfth grade. It was much less than I thought, and I didn't like any of the colleges that had accepted me. I went to study Kurdish in Baghdad university because I wanted to see Baghdad. I graduated after four years, but I still liked scientific lessons. After several years of teaching I became the principal of Kawa school. All of these years passed and I still wanted to study scientific lessons. One day, we were notified that there was a math course for teachers so I quickly signed up. After I took that course, I started teaching math until the day I was retired.” ...

Oct 22 2020

October 22, 2020

“When I was a student in 1955, my father and grandfather were working as carpenters. They used to craft tools using wood. My grandfather passed away and my father joined the army and I was still a student. After a while, my father returned but he was injured. He had lost his left leg in the war, and couldn't work anymore. I decided to continue the work of my father and grandfather, and I liked the work more than I liked going to school. I wanted to finish early every day so I can go to work. I did like studying as well but I couldn't focus well.” ...

Oct 22 2020

October 22, 2020

in Humans of North

“We are six brothers and one sister. I left school and started farming due to my family struggling financially, and I have been doing it for nine years. When I was a kid, I wanted to be a doctor, but reality is different from imagination. Financial struggles didn't let me reach my goals. Each day I work in a different field, today we pick cotton, and tomorrow something else. We wake up everyday at 5 AM before sunrise to get ready, and at about 6 AM we get to the farms and work until 5 PM. We get a fee for all the cotton picking we do, about 8 cents for each kilo. It is a really difficult job, but we have to do it.” ...

Oct 21 2020

October 21, 2020

“Because we were poor, I had to work in a restaurant close to our house after school. When my dad left to Damascus to work, he took me with him. I started working in a hotel for three years. I learned a lot from the chefs there even though they never wanted anyone to learn from them, but I used to watch them from the windows and wrote what I noticed.I went to North of Kurdistan due to the war and worked there as a chef. The owner was very satisfied with my work because I knew very well to cook Eastern food, so he took me to Denmark with him for work. I worked there for nine months, then finally decided to go back to Rojava and live with my family. I opened an oriental food restaurant in Hasaka. I love my job and always try to grow more.” ...

Oct 21 2020

October 21, 2020

in Humans of South

“When you set someone as your role model, you would want to turn most of your life like theirs, even your hair and clothes. Because of my love for Marcelo the Brazilian player, I have made my haircut to look like his, even though a lot of people criticize me for my looks. I hear a lot of people saying that I look like a woman, or say that it's a shame how I let my hair grow so much. One of my teachers told me once if I shave my hair, he would give me 15 grades for it, I told him if he even lets me pass, I wouldn't shave it. My father really supports my decision, and doesn't want me to shave it, but my mother always fights with me because of my hair.” ...

Oct 20 2020

October 20, 2020

in Humans of East

“After I received my diploma, I became a teacher in Mahabad. However, I was imprisoned for three years. A lot of bad things happened in those three years; My father and my big brother passed away, who was the source of my inspiration for singing. After I was released from prison, I went back to an empty house.My brother had a beautiful voice, but no one had been a singer in our family. My father knew that I had a good voice, but he never let me sing in front of my friends when we used to hang out because unfortunately, in our country singing is widely misunderstood. When we bought our first radio device I was so inspired by Tahir Tofiq and Mohamed Salih Dilan's poems. Regardless of the folk songs I have studied, I have taken many Badini Melodies and combined it with Sorani poems. I have about 400 unrecorded songs, and many people have asked me to teach singing, but I don't believe in it.” ...

Oct 20 2020

October 20, 2020

“My sister and I have been playing football for four years. We used to play on the streets, and one day Captain Rasho who is now my coach came to me and asked me to play in a stadium. I stepped into a new chapter in my life when Captain Rasho decided to include us in his team. At first, I found it very hard because I had never played in a stadium before.Last year, I was playing for Amuda women's team, even though I was a new player the coach called me up because of my height. I became the first player to play in women's Syrian league at the age of fourteen. We won our last game in Damascus, and became the champions.We also became the champions of women's Syrian league for under 18 several days ago. My sister was the captain and she lifted the trophy. I was voted as the best player of the tournament and had scored the most goals.” ...

Oct 19 2020

October 19, 2020

“My two brothers were in a dance group as kids, but they joined YPG when they grew up. I learned dancing from them, and for about three years I was in a children's dance group. Once I grew up, I joined an older dance group and then became the trainer of the group. Despite my young age, I taught dancing to a lot of students.In addition to dancing, I taught myself to play Oboe because not many people are familiar with it here, but it is widely used in Afrin, they consider it as a part of the Kurdish tradition. I was sixteen years old when I bought my first oboe, and little by little I learned how to play. I have only taken two classes, and the rest I learned on my own. Everyone I knew wanted to learn how to play a violin or a guitar, but I preferred playing the oboe. While serving in the army, I was getting some attention because I knew how to play the oboe and dance, and so Farhad Mardi the artist offered me to join their group, and I happily accepted.” ...

Oct 19 2020

October 19, 2020