My Grandmother and Other Stories: Histories of the Palestinians as ...
My Grandmother and Other Stories: Histories of the Palestinians as ...
My Grandmother and Other Stories: Histories of the Palestinians as ...
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The Individual <strong>and</strong> <strong>the</strong> Public<br />
Still, time proved it difficult to end <strong>the</strong> problematic situation <strong>of</strong> protecting a beautiful<br />
widow who w<strong>as</strong> desired by several men. Words, winks <strong>and</strong> rumours became constant<br />
pressures in Zahra’s life; she had no husb<strong>and</strong> to protect her <strong>and</strong> stop <strong>the</strong> wagging<br />
tongues. This problem only escalated, especially after Zahra turned down some less<br />
than tempting marriage proposals from men older than herself (notably, not unlike her<br />
late husb<strong>and</strong> Abu Fayyad had been). Many <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> villagers saw this <strong>as</strong> obstinacy <strong>and</strong><br />
a challenge from a woman outsider who w<strong>as</strong> better <strong>of</strong>f accepting <strong>the</strong> protection <strong>of</strong> a<br />
husb<strong>and</strong>, even if he w<strong>as</strong> old. However, Zahra insisted on managing her own home,<br />
even though she understood <strong>the</strong> risks <strong>of</strong> this position. 13<br />
The house where my gr<strong>and</strong>mo<strong>the</strong>r lived with her three children is directly adjacent to<br />
<strong>the</strong> village mosque <strong>and</strong> a number <strong>of</strong> neighbours’ homes. I remember that I <strong>and</strong> some<br />
neighbourhood friends would jump from one ro<strong>of</strong>top to ano<strong>the</strong>r to play <strong>and</strong> visit with<br />
each o<strong>the</strong>r, instead <strong>of</strong> going down into <strong>the</strong> alleyways <strong>and</strong> narrow streets between <strong>the</strong><br />
village’s old homes. This phenomenon <strong>of</strong> building village homes directly up against<br />
each o<strong>the</strong>r w<strong>as</strong> one way <strong>of</strong> creating a natural barrier against attacks on <strong>the</strong> village by<br />
outsiders. 14 However, it also allowed village’s hoodlums to use <strong>the</strong>se ro<strong>of</strong>tops for illicit<br />
purposes, including break-ins <strong>and</strong> <strong>as</strong>saults against women. These facts were not lost<br />
on my gr<strong>and</strong>mo<strong>the</strong>r Zahra, who took <strong>the</strong> necessary precautions <strong>of</strong> bolting some <strong>of</strong> her<br />
windows <strong>and</strong> fortifying her house.<br />
One night, my gr<strong>and</strong>mo<strong>the</strong>r heard a light tapping on <strong>the</strong> wooden door leading to<br />
her room. When she <strong>as</strong>ked who w<strong>as</strong> <strong>the</strong>re, <strong>the</strong> man st<strong>and</strong>ing behind <strong>the</strong> door did<br />
not give his name, but <strong>as</strong>ked her in a low voice to open <strong>the</strong> door. <strong>My</strong> gr<strong>and</strong>mo<strong>the</strong>r<br />
responded by picking up an iron c<strong>of</strong>fee grinder <strong>and</strong> opening <strong>the</strong> door with <strong>the</strong> o<strong>the</strong>r<br />
h<strong>and</strong>. But before she could strike <strong>the</strong> man on <strong>the</strong> head with <strong>the</strong> c<strong>of</strong>fee grinder, he had<br />
escaped to <strong>the</strong> ro<strong>of</strong>tops <strong>and</strong> disappeared into <strong>the</strong> night. Throughout my childhood <strong>and</strong><br />
adolescence, I heard stories <strong>of</strong> my gr<strong>and</strong>mo<strong>the</strong>r’s courage <strong>and</strong> strength <strong>of</strong> character,<br />
which explained her endurance in <strong>the</strong> face <strong>of</strong> <strong>the</strong> many challenges <strong>of</strong> her life.<br />
Never<strong>the</strong>less, Fayyad <strong>and</strong> his relatives took o<strong>the</strong>r precautions <strong>and</strong> decided not to leave<br />
Hajj Salim Krayyim’s widow alone to fend for herself. After all, her oldest child w<strong>as</strong><br />
not yet 10 years old.<br />
When an intruder tried again to violate <strong>the</strong> sanctity <strong>of</strong> Zahra al-Ja’uniyya’s home,<br />
he fell into <strong>the</strong> trap set for him in cooperation with two policemen. Hussein Khalil<br />
w<strong>as</strong> captured on 13 September, 1929 <strong>and</strong> w<strong>as</strong> detained in Acre Prison until his court<br />
date. 15 Khalil Hussein w<strong>as</strong> <strong>the</strong>n tried on charges <strong>of</strong> <strong>as</strong>saulting Zahra al-Ja’uniyya <strong>and</strong><br />
her home. He w<strong>as</strong> convicted <strong>and</strong> sentenced to just six months in jail. 16 The Manna’<br />
family felt that this sentence w<strong>as</strong> much lighter than it should have been <strong>and</strong> decided<br />
[ 64 ] HISTORICAL FEATURES From Seferberlik to <strong>the</strong> Nakba