Project Note
Each woman's profile is based on either her own words directly translated from Arabic to English or paraphrased depending on personal preference. These women agreed to participate but were able to determine which privacy measures they felt comfortable with. Names are changed to protect each woman's identity, and the photos and artwork were only included as specified.
Hadeel هديل
Nationality: Palestinian (Hebron)
"I saw the art therapy classes and I wanted to participate. When I did, I was so happy because I loved drawing. I also liked it because it helped me release the stress I had. I had no one to listen to me when I needed to talk. I became a stronger person. After the art classes, I started to respect myself more and became stronger.
Then I took a course for parental care. I became so strong and I will be something someday. I wanted to be a nurse a long time ago but my family refused. My son has special needs and I became more informed about how to care for him. Now, I might work with children with disabilities.
I learned to be strong and to not give up. Also, I learned to understand how to judge character, because not all people are good. I started to say "no" to things and people that I did not want. I also began to read a lot about psychology. Art therapy is [very helpful in seeing] where you were and where you are now.
You start to remember the stages of your life and how you changed. You start to understand yourself. The activity that affected me the most was the body mapping. I was a simple person at that time who really only thought of her son. I don’t know how I trusted that character. When we were asked to evaluation ourselves, I said that I am the queen of myself and my house."
Noor نور
Nationality: Palestinian
38-year-old Noor is a mother of five and has overcome several obstacles through classes at JRF. She was able to negotiate her position within her marriage, facilitate better relationships with and between her children, and pursue her goals academically and professionally. All of this was made possible by the communication skills and self-awareness she gained through classes.
Noor has been taking courses at the Foundation for 12 years and has brought her children with her for several classes.
She explains,
“I came here and started to take the courses about 12 years ago. I became more aware of how to act and deal with myself, my husband, and my family. I started to solve a lot of problems at home.” She married very young and was unable to finish her studies, partially due to an unsupportive husband. However, Noor was also able to find a way of balancing her responsibilities of being a mom with achieving her dreams of continuing her studies and learning to be a cook. She says, “I asked myself why should I stop dreaming? My role as a mother won’t end, so I have to do it in addition to achieving my goals.” Her relationship with her children also improved. She continues,
“I started to apply what I learned from the courses here. I have two teenage girls and a son who is difficult to deal with and I brought all my kids here to take courses and they liked it a lot. They changed their views on life. They are no longer sad or depressed. They used to enjoy their time here and go back home and study well. Their relation with each other became better. My goal was to study cooking and I started achieving my goal here. I convinced my husband who was unsupportive that I will take these free courses because I like cooking.”
JRF also taught Noor the power of loving herself and how that affects what we feel we deserve.
“I learned that I have to work on myself to change the way I look at people. I was sensitive but now I’m confident and I love myself. When we love ourselves, we start seeing that people love us. I don’t want to lose myself for my kids without achieving my goals. In the end, my kids will have their own life and I will stay by myself, so I have to take care of myself from now. I have to try to improve myself.”
When asked about what skills she has learned at the Foundation, she said she now has a better understanding of how bullying is used to control others. Navigating how to limit others’ control over us was a lessons she then taught to her children and even her husband.
Malak ملاك
Age: 28
Nationality: Jordanian
Malak, 28, is originally from Jordan. She has been attending art therapy classes for over three years as a way to heal from severe psychological damage, resulting from years of experiencing domestic violence. Malak first experienced abuse when she was only seven-years-old. She now suffers from extreme trust issues and her sister-in-law introduced her to these art therapy courses as an outlet. At first, she explains that she was terrified. However, over time, she was able to open up and begin addressing her emotions and feelings through her artwork.
“It took me two years, but I have become more confident in myself...I’ve stopped letting fear control me. I’ve overcome this fear now. I learned how to communicate and get to know myself through art therapy courses. Art therapy showed me how weak I had become in my life, how to become stronger, and see that my life is enough.”
Faten فاتن
Age: 43
Faten became involved at the foundation when she took a course about how to prevent early marriage. She needed advice on issues with her children and husband, who she eventually divorced. After consulting with a specialist in parental care, she learned better communication skills and how to provide for her children regarding their specific needs. She says, “Then I took the art therapy course, so now when I feel stressed or when I face a problem I do the breathing activity until I feel better. We used to express ourselves through drawing and clay. I wish I can take the course again.”
Art therapy courses taught her how to communicate with her husband and family in a way that was healthier. It also taught her how to say no and where her limits were. “Before art therapy, I used to be angry all the time for the things I never had and the things I want to get rid of. I used to cry a lot but after the art therapy, I started knowing myself more and letting all the negative energy out through drawing.”
“My favorite part was drawing the "journey of life" where we had to talk about the best and the hardest times in our lives. In my case, it was marriage because I didn't know how to cope with a very different personality than my own. I learned the most important thing in marriage is strong communication and art therapy has helped me realize this and improve."
Hala هالة
Nationality: Syrian
Hala’s experience with the JRF started a couple years ago. She took all the courses offered such as self-empowerment, communication with youngsters and parental care. The only class she had not participated in was art therapy.
Hala explains that she was full of fear. She used to be afraid of everyone, women and men. She lacked self-confidence but started to be more confident after her experience at JRF where she started to insist on reaching the goals she wanted. She said that JRF was the first place where she spoke about herself and her life experiences. She learned skills of all kinds like sewing, drawing, communication with herself and others.
She says she is pleased with herself now. The most impactful life experience she had was the course on concentration. It was the first time she said she talked confidently about herself and what happened to her.
This is when Hala opened up about the trauma she has experienced from domestic violence. She realized it was nothing she had done to deserve this abuse and she felt strong enough at the JRF to speak about it. The women at the foundation have connected her with legal help to ensure that she is safe.
The other activity that strongly affected her was drawing. She found she was very talented in sewing and has started making her income from it after partnering with a large business. All of the negativity she has experienced she channels into her artwork. She says her message is “optimism, hope, and the love of life.”