Oct. 8.2016

The drivers drove us out further than usual up north, into Bikka valley to visit a refugee camp where we would play with the kids there for 2 consecutive days-For those that have not read Day 1 and Day 2,  we are a small team of specialists from all over, coming together in Beirut to practice Original Play with refugee children living in numerous camps across Lebanon-On this day, we moved our mats to a small space that was previously used as a classroom . The mats were set up by the team and with help from some of the children.

On the first day the groups we played with were substantially aggressive. They banged on the door persistently, barged in unless physically stopped from entering the room, and pushed and competed with each other to enter. These children were in desperate need of organization and so the team split up. Two people were put in charge outside, getting the kids sorted by age, lining them up, and breaking up quarrels. Three people inside the room to organize the kids on the mats and play with them. Fred stood at the door to keep the unlock-able door closed (inside the room) as the bigger boys were using all their might to push down the door. At some point the banging on the walls was so loud I had to drown out the sound, turning it into background noise, so I could focus on the play.

Fred, the master play specialist, our teacher, was watching us like a loving but never overprotective parent the whole time. He allowed us the freedom to make decisions and explore our own leadership skills and interfered only when he saw that we needed some guidance or help keeping the play-ground a safe space for all.

With all the chaos the children were making outside the room/play space, the boys managed to break the water pipes, we later found out. Ironically , inside, the play space was very cool and calm. We managed to compose the energy of the children once they entered.

One instance I remember is of a little boy who, when invited to play, came rushing towards me with great force! He strangled me around the neck and would not let go. My colleague came to my rescue and took on some of that energy. We do that sometimes, share a particularly aggressive child.

 

I also recall a girl about 12 years old. She was psychically large, aggressive, and attacking with kicks. The shocking thing was how clear the intention to hurt was in her movement.

After our play with lots of boys and girls that afternoon, everybody was exhausted and hungry. The camp management invited us for some finger food and we called it a day. Playing with so many children is always a huge physical and emotional effort which is why we are always hungry afterwards 🙂

The following play day, the boys were not allowed to play with us, since they destroyed the pipes. We had an incredibly good day with the girls. They were so happy we were there and expressed it with sincere words, affection, and tears when it was time to say goodbye.

Oct.9.2016

With our trip nearing the end, we passed by a camp to pay a visit to a special boy with a story that I will not share here (we met him earlier in 2014). It was very emotional for me to see the look in that young man’s eyes, no words can describe it, so I won’t even try.

Today was we were welcomed by a Syrian mother and her three  musician children. In their humble tent, they invited us in, served us coffee, and entertained us. To see hospitably in a refugee camp, that is just on another level!

Their mother was investing in music lessons at the camp, in continuing her children’s education, just like any loving parent would. Here we are in the middle of a war, in a refugee camp, in a tent, with a family that lost more than you and me could imagine and life, love, and music go on. The resilience and strength of the human spirit is incredible! I leave you with the live entertainment that we received. 🙂

Don’t forget to check out day 5 at our first Palestinian refugee camp (Shateelah). I will do a photos only post for day 5 as words fail me.

Rawan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Today marked a reunion with the amazing Original Play team!  Fred Donaldson, Noraini Mahmood, Soumaya Al Azem, and myself. The four of us had not met all together in Lebanon since my last trip to Beirut in 2014. The team had grown since and I was about to meet the rest over breakfast in our hotel restaurant. Ingrid, Sonia, Uwe, and  Armin!  The team was multi-culturally rich ( Germany, Austria, Sweden/USA, Bahrain/Singapore, Canada/Dubai). I would get to know the new participants and share some profound moments with all, over the next few days.

You are probably thinking what is this Original Play? What is she talking about?! I can start by telling you that is not something you can describe in words but can only experience first hand. The best I can do here is to describe it’s purpose.

The purpose of Original Play is to replace aggression with gentleness, isolation with connection, confusion with clarity, war with peace, and fear with love.

The founder of Original Play is the world renown play specialist  Dr. Fred Donaldson, a very inspiring individual who has dedicated his life’s work to changing patterns of fear and aggression around the world . He has taken this work beyond academia, cultural boundaries, and language. Fred is also a skillful martial artist and uses martial art principles in his work with refugee children, street kids, gangsters, prison-inmates, children with special needs, and wild animals . Yes, you heard me! He has practiced Original Play with wolves, horses, bears, lions, and dolphins.

I will leave the details of his story for you to find out, either by attending one of his introductory lectures, signing up for a weekend workshop, looking him up on google, or by having a chat with me. I have had the privilege of following Fred to several destinations as an apprentice in Original Play and have watched him do his magic in Bahrain, Poland, and Lebanon to name a few. This time I come from Dubai to spend 5 days with him and the team in Lebanon where we will spend our days mostly playing and interacting with refugee children and their families. The next few blog posts will document each of the five unforgettable days so please stay posted!

Oct 6.2016

After a hotel breakfast, the eight of us along with the two drivers headed towards Tripoli to the psychological center for trauma relief which hosts Syrian refugee children and their mothers (as most of the fathers have either been imprisoned or tortured to death).

These two young teenagers with their niece told us of their struggle to survive in a dangerous area in Tripoli, at risk of being harassed or raped, the 16 year old was forced to quit working at an ice-cream shop. After both the dad and brother were kidnapped and killed in Syria, the remaining family of four women fled to Lebanon. The girls now out of school and desperate to make ends meet. A 14 year old, a 16 year old, a 23 year old (not in the picture), a toddler, and the mother (not in picture). The oldest one, abandoned by a new husband after giving birth, works a 12 hour job as a hairdresser in Beirut and leaves her toddler with her teenage sisters. Her salary is just enough to cover the rent for the small room they all stay in. Her salary does not cover food or transport for the long journey from Tripoli to Beirut and back. Donations collected by one of our team members  would help move them to a better area and fund their education for a year.

At the center we played with 2 groups of children in a small classroom. Afterwards we headed towards 2 orphanages. I was assigned the role of translator since I was Arabic speaking. I introduced the team, explained the reason behind our visit, and the rules of Original Play. At the end of the Original Play session I always asked/translated to the children the same 3 questions and got the same answers.

1. When we played with you did we hit you? No

2. Did we kick you? No

3. Did we hurt you? No

That is what real play is. It is when everyone plays together safely.There is no winner or loser. People can be older or younger than us, parents or siblings, or people from different countries. Yet, we can all play together safely without any body getting hurt. Anything else is not play and we must say stop it! This is not play, I will not participate.

I need to stress that this is incredibly important for kids who have experienced trauma and hardship, which in turn breeds hopelessness, frustration, and subsequent aggression. When families are in survival mode the fight or flight response is activated – you either become aggressor or victim, there is no in between. We see this manifest in many circumstances such as slums, street gangs, …..and refugee camps.

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Before continuing our journey we stopped in the old market in Tripoli for lunch in an old Lebanese restaurant and some soap shopping which Tripoli is famous for.

At one of the orphanages. After laying out the mats, we played with 5 groups of children, starting with youngest and most gentle (often but not always the case).  While playing with one of the last groups of older more aggressive males, 3 boys jumped on one of my male colleagues’ back and while trying to get one of them off I was pushed hard and fell. No harm done, but that day I learned that I could get hurt doing this and needed to be okay with that. I also learned a lesson in leading the play, when one of the boys had a choking grip on a colleague and it was my responsibility to know when to end the session. I re-learned the importance of clarity with my team, the children, and the adults watching on the side-lines.

We concluded our play with a group of strong and energetic girls. There was no shyness, timidity, or reservation from these young ladies. They did not care about age or gender, they gave a fearless 100 % to the whole team.

Before leaving, the youth surprised us with a musical performance. Many had bonded with some of the adults they had played with. I was asked to translate: “can you come back tomorrow?”, “Can I have picture with you?”, and “I love you”.  We played with more than a 100 children that day.

Rawan