Redwan Adalat – Page 6 – Humans of Kurdistan

“I care a lot about the future, I always have. I have wanted to write and become a well-known Kurdish poet since I was a kid. Believing in the future is essential in building one's confidence to achieve their goals. Most of my dreams have come true due toy writings, whether they are poems or short speeches. The constant support of my family has made me more confident and more successful in my life. I started putting my feelings into writing, everything I felt in my life was on paper. Despite all the wars that are happening in our area, women are prisoners of our traditions and culture. It is a shame for women to work, they believe only men can work. Nevertheless, the situation is much better now, women exist in all industries. I still have the same dreams as I did as a child, and one day I will become a well-known Kurdish poet”. ...

Apr 26 2021

April 26, 2021

“As I turned 11, my hands became familiar with scissors, and I have been doing this job for 49 years now. In 1974 I joined the revolution, I opened a barber shop in Choman, and was cutting Peshmarga's hair. When the revolution failed, I left to Iran to work. I then came back to Erbil and worked as a barber until the civil war in 1995. I then left to Akre and opened a shop there. While being a barber shop, my place also had become a center for art because back then the people used to support artists. I had the desire to take photos and record artists voices, and that led me to open a studio and produce music for artists”. “I have also received awards and recognitions from the enlightenment ministry. When the war against ISIS started, along with some friends we were cutting Peshmarga's hair in Akre, Nawaran, Khazr and Bashik, and we were also thanking them for their service. The difference between other barbers and me is that people with different ages come to me for haircuts. I usually work with scissors, even though it is more tiring, but I like using scissors more because every haircut is different”. ...

Apr 24 2021

April 24, 2021

“I didn't finish my education and became a shepherd in a village in Bardarash. In the winter, I used to go to take care of the cows, there were 27 cows, and I used to get paid 15 dinars per cow. I used to take the cows to many places, I still don't know why I was traveling so much. I was young, and I was alone, I didn't have any other shepherd with me to spend time with. I still like the work and cannot stay at home. I have gained a lot weight now, I don't walk to many places now, it has been 9 years since I have done so. From the beginning, I was using a motorcycle, then a horse, and now an old pickup. The worst time I spent shepherding was in 2003 because back then Baath regime's check points used to randomly shoot at us. I remember one day I was shepherding along with some other shepherds, they shot at us and we hid under rocks until the situation was calm again. I have been doing this job for 20 years, and I make a good living out of it”. ...

Apr 22 2021

April 22, 2021

“The most difficult time in my life was when I was 14 and my brother went to South of Kurdistan, my parents encouraged him to leave due to the war that was happening in our city. We were in a really bad state the day before he left. He was our protector. We were used to him being around us at all times, and come to school with us, and play with us. He was our only protector in difficult times. One evening my mother packed his stuff, and the next day early in the morning we took him to the boarder and said goodbye, it was the most difficult time of my life. A year has passed, and even though we are constantly communicating through social media, we are yet to get used to him being away. I hope my brother returns, and all other people who have migrated return to their families”. ...

Apr 21 2021

April 21, 2021

“After graduating from nursery, I always had my mind on how I can earn the nickname they give to nurses (angel of mercy). I have always treated patients and their relatives as calmly as possible. Patients usually are in pain and not in a good mood, so you have to have patience. Nursery has taught me many things, from being respectful to being calm. At the same time, there are a lot of upsetting things, for example when you have to deliver the news of someone's dying. I have seen many tragic cases in my life, but none of them equal to that one time when they brought in a 12-year-old child who had gotten in a car accident and was suffering internal bleeding. The child was in a very bad shape, we had to transfer the child to outside of Halabja. The child’s heart stopped two times on the way, but we could revive the child’s heartbeat, but the child unfortunately passed away the minute we got to the hospital. I will never forget the child’s face”. ...

Apr 19 2021

April 19, 2021

“One day while I was participating in a sports event in Latakia, I received the news that ISIS had attacked the villages around Khabour, and my village is there as well. I quickly returned to my village to defend our land. After a few days, ISIS attacked our village and we couldn't hold on much, we retreated. Some of my friends were martyred along with Evana Hoffman who was a fighter from Africa fighting on our side, I was very sad. After ISIS's invasion, some of the people went to Europe and some went to safer cities like Qamishlo and Hasakah. ISIS destroyed the church in the village, which was built more than 80 years ago, and that motivated us to liberate our village. After four months between ISIS and Khabour protection forces and YPG we were able to liberate the village that they had destroyed. Today, the 150 Asyrian families that were living in the place have all left, only my wife and I are left here. We wish that stability comes back to this please and the families return”. ...

Apr 17 2021

April 17, 2021

“I worked in a restaurant that was serving barbecue in Sarekani for 40 years. After our city was invaded by Turkey in 2019, we migrated to a camp near Tal Tamr. After we were settled, I had to start working again to provide a living for my family. I set up a trolley to sell (Mushabak), a type of sweet that's well known there. I sell a kilo for a dollar, which is way lower than Bazaar's price, and that's because I pay no taxes or shop rents, and the IDPs can't spend much money. I'm very happy with my work, I even have customers from outside of the camp. However, I can only work during the winter, in the summer not many people by my product. Therefore, I search for other jobs during the summer because I can't afford being idle”. ...

Apr 15 2021

April 15, 2021

“As a kid, I was into making things by hand, especially using ceramic. I've lived in Iran for several years and learned the profession from a Persian master. I wanted to work at a factory where they were making vases, but they wouldn't let me because I am from South of Kurdistan. However, my dream did come true and I started working in a ceramic factory as a janitor. The best timing to practice what I loved was when the master was taking a lunch break, there were no electrical machines, so I used to use a pedal to operate the machine and make vases, it was very tiring. He used to get angry if he were to find out that I had used his equipment. One day, he got a phone call and went home for the rest of the day without finishing his work. I took over his work and made 10 of the exact same of what he was making”. “When he came back, he saw new vases, and angrily asked who had made them, and my friends pointed at me. He was very angry at the beginning, but after a while he was very happy that I had the potential to work. We worked several years together until I had to go back to Kurdistan, he was upset when he found out that I had to leave. I didn't stop when I came back, it's been 9 years that I do this job now and my sons are working with me. Pottery has become a part of my life, and I make a living out of it. All the material and equipment that I use exist in Kurdistan, including the mud and that glass-like material that I use for the designs”. ...

Apr 12 2021

April 12, 2021

“Losing my grandparents several years ago was among the worst things that's happened to me. I lost my grandfather in 2008, and my grandmother in 2013. Even though I was just a kid, but I was really sad. I looked at my grandmother one last time before they bury her because I knew it was going to be the last time. I felt heart broken, and tears streamed down from my eyes. My father found it very difficult to tell me the news; you'd be very lucky to have grandparents like them. My grandmother used to put to me to sleep and take me everywhere with her. My grandfather used to always give me money. They were really good people, they used to always support me, and for me they were like my parents. Their passing was such a surprise to us, and I still get very sad when I think about it”. ...

Apr 11 2021

April 11, 2021

“We are a twin, our names are Ahmed and Mohammed. Not many people believe us when we say that we are a twin, and I don't blame them to be honest, even we know that we don't look alike that much. Even though we were born and grown together, but we are not together as much as other twins are. We have studied only until the third grade, we couldn't stay in school due to bad financial situation, and now we are a shepherding for a gentleman in Kandinawa in exchange for a monthly salary. The sheep are not ours, but we treat them like they are, we are always watching them. We don't have mobile phones, we don't really think they are necessary and we don't it to take our time. For 12-year old like us, this could be not a very suitable job, but there aren't many jobs in the city, especially for our age”. ...

Apr 04 2021

April 4, 2021