Mohammed Moussa

And our relationship with our people has to be like this, you know, when you have a friend

when you have a wife, when you have a father, a mother that you lived your whole life with.

They meant life to you.

They meant home to you.

They meant childhood to you.

So when they are gone, parts of who you are go with them too.

And many of the people in Gaza feel what I feel, but not all of them could utter this in words or talk to everyone about this void in them, this loss and what this loss has left in them.

It is very important and most of us in Gaza found education as an escape of this reality that we live.

You will find all of the families encourage their kids to educate themselves.

And that's what my family did.

That's what every family in Gaza did.

Reminded their kids of how education could set you free from this reality that you live in as a Palestinian.

And you should not give up to that reality.

work on yourself and should learn and we found refuge in education and learning as Palestinians and as Gazans because we were isolated from the other Palestinians not only the world outside but we were isolated from

from everybody in gaza with the siege and the wars like they feel like they they are in control of of uh of the borders and everything and for like over 17 years in siege you know and yeah we we sheltered in education this sense of isolation within the strip itself

It was a force to seek to know the other and to know yourself, because you never meet anybody but cousins there.

You rarely meet somebody else.

So we grew up with the power inside us and passion to meet people from all over the world.

My father, for example, he works with the Red Cross and his friends would come from all over the world and he would prepare us at home.

to be ready to welcome his friends and we were excited to meet his friends.