The Hamas-Fatah Conundrum

The Hamas-Fatah Conundrum – 5^th-6^th February 2010

Something big happened today in Jordan. Something really important. Up until this point the tension in people’s houses had been rising to a boiling point and when the government made the announcement today, everyone, and I mean everyone, released their tension. All day I have been hearing gunfire and explosions in and around the neighborhood. We went to a relative’s house in a really nice area to check up on them and we heard shooting just down the street. That was the closest it ever came to the house. Don’t bother checking the news because no one in America is reporting this. You may only fine a mention of it in the Jordanian news outlets. That’s the way it works here, because today was the day the Ministry of Education announced the results of the Tajehee, or the Jordanian equivalent of a major high school exam that determines whether or not families will be able to send their children to college. Those who had passing grades paraded through the streets with their car horns blaring. Celebrations at home involved a Middle East tradition of firing guns into the air and lighting off fireworks. Wait. I mentioned earlier that it was only celebratory gunfire right? Hope I didn’t lead you to thinking something different. (More gray hairs for mom?)

So far it has been yet another weekend of socializing! We went to my Auntie’s house just down the street for tea but I was lucky to have the chance to meet some new family members. I can say without a doubt that every family member I have met so far has been nothing but nice! I owe a great debt to everyone here who has graciously welcomed me into their homes and have been nothing but kind and friendly! They are some of the nicest people I have ever met in my life. J Most everybody at the house today I had already met. The two sisters of my host mother are sweet old ladies who hassle me to always speak Arabic but guide me when I get stuck. There were, however, several new faces. First, there were two younger children named Rama and Karim, 13ish and 9ish, respectively. I spent part of the evening playing a game on the computer with Rama and the other part trying to take a photo of Karim. (He was shy and would hide from the computer, but I got him when he was distracted! Mwahahaha!) I was very impressed with Rama (she reminded me of a young hilly). She was very smart and outgoing! Although she was only 13, she spoke near perfect English to me and asked me questions about politics—and she never danced around a question. (Are you a democrat or republican? Did you support Bush? What do you think of Obama?) I actually laughing at one point because the entire family was paying attention to me as I answered the questions and Rama asked me if I supported Hamas or Fatah. The family got a kick out of her question and told her I was American, not Palestinian. (I really do enjoy living with a family of Palestinian origin. Its just the perspective in the Middle East I wanted to understand the most!) The son, Karim, was only shy of the camera. Most of the time he was either running around or he was on his computer looking at airplanes. He really wants to be a pilot of passenger aircraft one day! He is really good with geography and aircraft identification. I showed him some pictures of the planes Papa flew during WWII. He thought it was really cool! Their mother, Dima, was by far my favorite person of the night! She was just a really interesting person to talk to. She helped me with my Arabic and was one of the only people who would speak clearly and slowly to me so I could understand what she was saying!

Visited more family today! This time it was the Aunt and Uncle from my “dads” side! I had a really great discussion (limited by my speaking ability) with the Uncle about my love for the history of the Middle East! He was also very knowledgeable about US history! (He has three children living in the United States.) I promised, when I speaking ability gets better, to return to his house and talk about history.

Last night my host sister and I had a movie night! We watched “Have You Heard About the Morgans?” Although a blatent chick flick, I really enjoyed it and we had a great time! I even got to tell her about American culture!

Bridget: My host sister loves Michael Buble. She recommends the website: http://www.mood.fm/

FUN FACTS:

Plays are still put on in the large Roman Ampitheater in Amman.

Reality TV is just and famous in Jordan as the US. (Although I haven’t found any equivalent to Jersey Shore.) Soaps Operas are crazy too.

The colloquial Arabic here is very rich. I am being taught a Jordanian dialect in school, I am speaking a Palestinian dialect at home.

The tribal system here is becoming more and more evident to me. Community here, and in Islam, is very important. First impressions are based on both the way you act and the stereotypes people gather of your family name. (So far Bettis is going pretty well.)

The Royal Family here are the last direct descendents of the Prophet Mohammed (sala aalihu wa salam)

Legitimacy of government authority is only gained through lineage to the prophet. If you ever rule Muslim people, you must at least try to claim some sort of lineage to Mohammad. That’s what the British did when they colonized Jordan.