The olive harvest!
9/7/03 By Maisoon Rice: This was sent to me by my Egyptian email friend. The narrative below evokes a warm sense of belonging, of unity, family life and cooperation as well as pride that we can enjoy the fruits of our labour and thank God for blessing us with such rich crops which are our Life's blood and our link with our ancient country and our links with the Almighty who gives special mention to the Olive tree both in the Qu'ran and the Bible. Symbolic tree It is a very symbolic tree which is why the Israelis want to destroy it as they do everything else that links our people with our history and deeply rich and invaluable heritage. I wanted to share this with you as I too can identify with this. My father's family for generations were landowners and grew olives, watermelon and had fruit orchards throughout Jenin, Jaffa and Haifa where had they grown oranges, long, long before the Zionists settled and usurped our land. I too had a grandfather who lived to a good old age of 92 but who unfortunately broke his back and spent the last 10 of his 92 years on his back. I last saw him in 1964 and he died some years later, just before the 1967 war. My great Uncle, his brother, who lived next door, and again in his 90's, died in the '67 war- when Israeli soldiers entered Jenin- and threw grenades into his home, killing him. He was praying (afternoon salat) at the time. Where he had been a Headmaster |
I also lost another uncle at the hands of Israelis, but this time in Beirut where my Uncle lived in the Sabra Shatila refugee camp, having already lost his home and school in Haifa where he had been a Headmaster, and from where, injured, he was forced to leave and left for Beirut where his wife came from and had family.
My uncle died from injuries sustained when Israel bombed the camps.
My beloved late father too had been injured by an Israeli grenade thrown at him by an Israeli woman, in 1948 when he lost his teeth and had shrapnel embedded in his hand.
Israel can destroy our trees, our crops, our land and homes/belongings, our lives, but they will NEVER EVER destroy our memories, our Rights and our hearts and soul, something they are totally devoid of.
We have our dream and one day, by the grace of God, sooner or later, we will see it come true, inshua'allah, because GOOD WILL PREVAIL OVER EVIL.
Mike, or Hanini (My nostalgia in Arabic) is an American-Palestinian (Palestinian-American) member of FreePalestine e-group.
His HANIN is always overwhelming.
He shared with the group his moving memories of the olive harvests in Palestine.
By Mike Odetalla:
Olive trees have always held a special place in my heart and my memories.
The olive tree itself, as well as the groves, is an integral part of the very fabric of Palestinian life.
To this day my mom sends me olive oil that was pressed from olives which are hand picked from the ancient olive trees that grow on our land.
These trees, some hundreds of years old, were planted by my ancestors: my great grandparents, my grandparents, my parents, and now, even by me, for I planted 30 olive saplings in the mid 80's that today produce some magnificent olives.
Tying a piece of black linen to a branch
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I wish to share with you my memories of the olive harvests that I experienced as a young boy in Palestine.
I always anticipated the annual olive harvest with great joy; much more so than the time to harvest the many fruits grown on my family's land.
Throughout the year, we carefully inspected each tree to ensure a healthy harvest.
My mother followed a practice of tying a piece of black linen to a branch of those trees that promised an exceptionally abundant crop - this helped ward off the "evil eyes" that might have a negative effect on the tree and its harvest.
[This is a custom much like a mother placing a blue stone or a silver hand with an eye, on a carriage or affixed to a baby's chest, an amulet to protect the child and ward off evil spirits.]
The the black cloth (or the blue stone) would distract a person from looking at the promising olive crop with envy.
Superstition was evident when it came to protecting the olive trees, just as it is a reflection of how much importance and love there was for the olive trees.
Picnic of cracked olives, tomatoes, cheese, sardines, onions, freshly baked bread
When the olive harvesting season begins, the hillsides of Palestine crawl with families and bring the hills alive with people working to gather their precious crop.
Family members, to this day, make an effort to travel to one another from all over the country to help in the olive harvest.
Olives are picked by hand as they have been for thousands of years.
As a child, I joined my family as we would set out early in the day with a picnic of cracked olives, tomatoes, cheese, sardines, onions, freshly baked bread, and of course the ever present thermos of mint tea.
We took the food that had been bundled the night before, and carrying large blankets, heavy ladders, and burlap bags as we headed for the hills with the olive groves.
Once there, the blankets were spread under the tree and the ladders leaned against it.
My mother and sisters picked those olives that could be reached by hand and used sticks or shook branches to knock down the olives that were too high to reach.
Played more than picked
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As for me, I loved to climb, and climb I did.
I would bounce from one branch to another, giving my mother a heart attack in the process.
I played around a lot more than I picked olives in those days.
I loved being outdoors with my family.
I would get to the top of these beautiful and ancient trees and proceed to throw olives at my sisters and brothers below me, an act that usually elicited no end of threats of bodily harm from my siblings.
Stop yelling at the boy, let him have fun
My mother likely spent more time yelling at me, than anything else.
We were Fellaheen (farmers), and as a fellah child, I lived for the outdoors.
This was the place that I was happiest.
We had no electricity, and thus, no TV to distract me.
The hills, trees, and orchards were my playground.
Lived on Zattar (wild thyme that grew in the hills)
My grandfather (God bless his soul) often yelled at his daughter, my mother, "stop yelling at the boy, let him have fun "
My grandfather often entertained me with stories from his own youth, stories about the trees and the harvest.
Widowed at 40, he never remarried and lived to the ripe old age of 98.
He was a vegetarian long before it became fashionable.
He lived on Zattar (wild thyme that grew in the hills), olives, tomatoes, and fresh bread.
He walked upright and smoked his pipe right up to the day he died in 1978.
He used to walk 5-10 kilometers a day. He was always walking somewhere. He was the only one of my grandparents that was still alive when I was born. The last time I saw him was in 1969.
Pickled cracked olives
Anyhow, after all the olives were gathered, they were placed in large bags and carried back home to be spread on the roof of our house for a few days before being sent to the village presses at Bir Ziet (in Arabic, an oil well).
Not all olives were sent to the presses; my mom made some into the pickled cracked olives that are so famous in Palestine.
We used medium sized stones like hammers to crack the olives one by one.
Other olives were left to ripen in the sun, and then stored with salt and oil.
Olives thus prepared are still seen in the many markets of Palestine. They are usually black and look almost like mini prunes.
A tree that was planted several hundred years before by my forefathers
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The olive trees and the land they grow on still have a special place in my heart.
They offer me a sense of connection to my history and that of my people.
A sense reinforced each time I remember or climb a tree that was planted several hundred years before by my forefathers.
To think that I was picking and eating from the same trees that my family had picked and eaten olives from for generations before me, still inspires awe in me.
It is something that I will most assuredly pass on to my children and hope that they will get the chance to do likewise.
And thus I offer you the following:
The Olive tree...
God created it before man
A branch in the bill of a dove that heralded peace and security for Noah...
Palestinians care for newly planted trees as if they were newborn children.
When the Palestinians plant an olive tree, they say a prayer: "God protect it and make it grow so that my children's grandchildren will benefit from its abundance"
What are the Israelis saying by the uprooting and destruction of ancient orchards of olive trees???
"Come, I'll tell you about Palestine"
Mike Odetalla..."A seed in the fruit of Palestine"
http://www.pcwfund.org
The link to thewebsite of Palestine Children's Welfare Fund ...Click to buy Palestinian embroidery online, sponsor a Palestinian child, buy a flag or a Kuffiya to feed one, or donate books for the children of the refugee camps and BirZeit Universiy.
"Here's freedom to him who would speak, Here's freedom to him who would write, For there's non ever feared that the truth should be heard, Save he who the truth would indict".
Robert Burns.
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How Israel sought to make this documentary illegal |
| It was made in 1997, except for Gaza settlers still in Gaza, could be written today. You’ll really like the scenes where Israelis speak of 'how to take care of the problem'. One American holds up a sign saying 'transfer all the Arabs to Oklahoma where there’s oil' Listen to settlers speak. Watch how uncomfortable they are with the camera facing them. 56 minutes long — so sit back or come back. See something that really does open your eyes to Palestine and the takeover now known as Israel. If you've never been there, observe this intensity and human cruelty. |
| 'People and the Land' (PDF file) by Tom Hayes — click here A 24 page article about how hard this film was to make. How Israel sought to make it illegal, doing all they could to prevent the film. |
| US Veto 41 for Israel | November 11, 2006 — US vetoes adoption of a U.N. Security Council resolution condemning Israel military operations in the Gaza Strip; vote: The United Kingdom, Denmark, Japan and Slovakia abstaining. 10-1 with four absentions, Britain, Denmark, Japan and Slovakia |
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| US Veto 40 for Israel | July 13, 2006 — US vetoes UN Qatari-sponsored resolution in the UN Security Council condemning Israel military disproportionate force in the Gaza Strip; vote: 10-1 with four absentions, Britain, Peru, Denmark and Slovakia |
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| US Veto 39 for Israel | October 5, 2004 — US vetoes UN condemning Israel military incursion in Gaza, causing many civilian deaths and extensive damage to property; vote: 11 to 1, with 3 abstentions, Britain, Germany, Romania |
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| US Veto 38 for Israel | March 25, 2004 — US vetoes UN condemning Israel for killing Palestinian spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmed Yassin in a missile attack in Gaza; vote: 11 to 1, with 3 abstentions, Britain, Germany, Romania |
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| US Veto 37 for Israel | October 14, 2003 — US vetoes UN raising concerns about Israel building of a securiy fence through the occupied West Bank; vote 10 to 1, with 4 abstentions, Britain, Germany, Bulgaria and Cameroon |
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| US Veto 36 for Israel | September 16, 2003 — US vetoes UN reaffirming the illegality of deportation of any Palestinian and expressed concern about the possible deportation of Yasser Arafat; vote: 11 to 1, with 3 abstentions, Britain, Germany and Bulgaria |
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| US Veto 35 for Israel | December 19, 2002 — US vetoes UN expressing deep concern over Israel killing of U.N. employees and Israel’s destruction of the U.N. World Food Program warehouse in Beit Lahiya and demanding that Israel refrain from the excessive and disproportionate use of force in the occupied territories; vote: 12 to 1, with 2 abstentions, Bulgaria and Cameroon |
UN President calls for sanctions against Israel
by Saed Bannoura — IMEMC News Thursday November 27, 2008
Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann said that the international community should engage in a 'boycott, divestment and sanctions' campaign against Israel, similar to those enacted against South Africa two decades ago."
Israel has engaged in a military occupation of the Palestinian territories since 1967, with an increase in military presence since the year 2000.
The people of Palestine continue to live under martial law, with no control of their land, sea or water.
In his remarks, d'Escoto said that Israeli policies in the Occupied Palestinian Territories appear similar to the apartheid of an earlier era, a continent away.
He said that the United Nations should not be afraid to use the term apartheid to describe what is happening in occupied Palestine.
Former US President Jimmy Carter came under fire for using the term 'apartheid' in reference to the Israel-Palestine conflict.
He was even prevented from speaking at the Democratic National Convention this year because of his position on the issue.
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More than Fifteen million US dollars is given by US taxpayers each day for the use of Israel, which presently involves the imprisonment of the remaining segregated ' Bantustan — Apartheid ' parcels of land occupied by millions of Palestinian people.
Palestinians were forced from their homes 60 years ago from what is now called Israel into refugee camps in Gaza and the West Bank, Jordan and Lebanon.
While attempts have been made by the Palestinians to create a better life for themselves, these refugee camps have been forced upon them to this day by American Taxpayer funding, and Anglo American, Europe backing and banking for Israel that has propped up the forced 'state' of Israel for more than fifty years.
Illuminati, New World Order elite have been at the forefront in protecting European and American settler people who stole the land and continue to steal the remaining few segments of land from the Palestinians, in essence taking away from the Palestinians piece by piece this land over these many years.
Funding by the US Taxpayer for the enslavement of the Palestinian people continues to increase, estimated now considerably more than the previous 4 billion US dollars per year.
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| US Veto 34 for Israel | December 14, 2001 — US vetoes UN condemning all acts of terror, the use of excessive force and destruction of properties and encouraged establishment of a monitoring apparatus; vote: 12-1, with 2 abstentions, Britain and Norway |
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| US Veto 33 for Israel | March 26, 2001 — US vetoes UN calling for the deployment of a U.N. observer force in the West Bank and Gaza; vote: 9 to 1, with 4 abstentions, Britain, France, Ireland and Norway |
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| Please take these images you see Please place them on your website Future generations need to know the monsters presently running our planet! |
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| US Veto 32 for Israel | March 21, 1997—Demanded Israel cease construction of the settlement Har Homa (called Jabal Abu Ghneim by the Palestinians) in East Jerusalem and cease all other settlement activity in the occupied territories; vote: 13 to 1, with one abstention |
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| US Veto 31 for Israel | March 7, 1997 — US vetoes UN calling on Israel to refrain from settlement activity and all other actions in the occupied territories; vote:14 to 1 |
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| US Veto 30 for Israel | May 17, 1995 — US vetoes UN declaring invalid Israel expropriation of land in East Jerusalem and in violation of Security Council resolutions and the Fourth Geneva convention; vote: 14 to 1 |
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| US Veto 29 for Israel | May 31, 1990 — US vetoes UN calling for a fact-finding mission on abuses against Palestinians in Israeli-occupied lands; vote: 14 to 1 |
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Yasser Arafat — Did Israel or the US kill him — Substitute Hamas for Arafat Former Palestine leader Yasser Arafat leaves his compound in the West Bank town of Ramallah, October 29, 2004 |
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Roots of evil in Jerusalem — Click here |
Did we bomb something! |
| The world seem kind of unreal to you, Ban Ki-moon! That's because you still think you understand! |
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| Please take these images you see Please place them on your website Future generations need to know the monsters presently running our planet! |
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Atrocities committed by Israel — graphic pictures What CNN nor the BBC ever shows you |
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| ISRAEL MASS WAR CRIMES January 14 - 18 2009 Israel massacres — desire to kill one and half million people They came up again with the Hamas-was-in-the-UN-school lie |
| ISRAEL MASS WAR CRIMES CONTINUE January 2nd week 2009 99% of US House joins 100% of US Senate in Supporting Israel with HRes34 The 42 vetoes of the US for Israel |
US Israel attack on Gaza City The Politics of Anti-Semitism 99 US Senators, 350 US House members attend AIPAC meeting |
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ISRAEL MASS WAR CRIMES CONTINUE January 2009 — Click here Israel killing — US paid army fires towards populations to cause death and injury The 42 vetoes of the US for Israel |
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