From Iraq, With Love

"They will beat their swords into plowshares..."

2011-06-12T12:54:00.001-07:00

Last week I had the opportunity to visit the prison grounds where Saddam Hussein's army was responsible for the torture, rape, and murder of tens of thousands of Kurds.

Its one of those places that has so much shock and horror attached to it that its surreal. Tanks and machine guns scattered around the campus are left out for the public to observe, climb on, enjoy. Its so easy to talk about the facts that happened there without any understanding of what those people actually went through.

I'm not even going to try.

A glimpse of Kurdistan.

2011-06-10T08:26:00.000-07:00

Make sure to click this image (and then click it again!) to view it full size!

Dreaming of Rabbits

2011-06-09T07:32:00.000-07:00

I recently got to know the neighborhood kids--what a way to make friends! It may sound silly but they're so welcoming and fun, so eager to show me the games they play and the things they like to do.

"I love you very mush"

2011-05-26T14:26:00.000-07:00

A nurse about my age, eager to practice her English, jotted her cell phone number in my notebook along with a short message: "I love you very mush".

Its officially the phrase of this trip.

A day at the hospital...

2011-05-24T13:07:00.000-07:00

The last 48 hours I've been mostly in and around the hospital. My biggest takeaway at this moment is the relationship I've started to construct with the mother's here. I've been covering and dressing like them and its made a bigger impact than I could image. And for me-- wonderfully simple lessons in respecting culture and custom.

I could say so much about how the women love when I wear a hijab, and I will, but right now I'll just show some pictures...

First off--tell me this picture doesn't make you smile:

Another cute boy...

A few things you'll always see:

Some kids just don't want to have their chest cut open...

Two mothers shared their packed lunch with me. They have all been so, so generous and kind to me.

Its been amazing listening to medical professionals address these issues and work so tirelessly on saving kids' lives.

Every mother/child is so unique and I've loved being trusted to photograph them.

Thanks!
Lydia

Ur, City of Abraham (and a picnic!)

2011-05-22T07:15:00.001-07:00

Today was an off day so we decided to go "sightseeing". Sightseeing is very different when everything is from...2000 BC.

We piled into vans and created a convoy with Ford trucks guarding us on both sides. Really weird.

(our escorts)

Iraq is very salty!

This next picture are tents of nomads....so amazing. I wish I could get closer but they stay pretty far back from the road.

This country is inhabited by the most beautiful children.

and a boat ride and a picnic (on the Euphrates!):

Oh, and me and Mr. Alex:

I am so blessed to be in such a beautiful country with such beautiful people. So many more things I could say and post, but I'll leave it at this for now. Thank you for the continued support!

The Marketplace

2011-05-20T09:01:00.000-07:00

If you read my blog last summer you've probably been expecting a post just like this one. I LOVE going through the marketplace here in Suly. The bazarre is endless. You can buy anything and everything from figs to bunny rabbits to hard drives to tennis shoes to diamond rings. Its amazing. So here's a lengthy set of fresh pictures to guide you through, enjoy!!

-Lydia

CVG to IST

2011-05-14T23:18:00.000-07:00

I left Cincinnati on Thursday afternoon and officially arrived in Slemani on Saturday at 1:30pm!

"Plough The Sea" glass bottle necklaces

2011-04-05T11:06:00.000-07:00

have a few extra dollars?

2011-03-24T19:43:00.001-07:00

"Need Thee Every Hour" vintage hymns, prayer banners (cute kitty not included!)

2011-03-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

In the spirit of Tibetan prayer flags, I present "Need Thee Every Hour"....

For those unfamiliar with Tibetan prayer flags: traditionally a "sutra" with an image of a Buddhist deity would be woodblock printed onto a colorful piece of cloth, then strung together with dozens of others and hung across mountain paths, over busy roadways, and in the home. The prayers would then be carried by the wind, pervading the area with compassion and goodwill.

I've used the pages of reclaimed hymnals to create my own version of these prayer flags! Each page is stitched to the next one, insuring long-lasting stability. Appreciate the hymns as prayers, or simply for the aesthetic effect. I love the way the light comes through the old paper!

If you're interested, I'm selling them and the money goes straight toward my time in Iraq.

Blessed to get to do this again!

2011-03-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

Just wanted to let you know I'll be leaving for Iraq in exactly two months! Can't wait, so excited to be working with Preemptive Love for the second summer in a row.

This summer the emphasis will be on Remedy Missions. If you remember, Remedy is the name given for the 2-week training and surgery missions PLC has been organizing with other NGO's. Its great! Iraqi doctors are being trained to perform these operations that would be otherwise unavailable in-country.

I'll be photographing and leading the intern team. Its going to be so different without the other interns from last year, and I know I'm really really going to miss them.

I'll selling some crafty things to raise a little support money, if you're interested keep an eye out because I'm going to be posting some of them on here!

Thank you all for your love for peace and your heart for the children of Iraq!

Much love,

Lydia

Nvar!

2010-07-20T14:25:00.000-07:00

Nvar

2010-07-19T15:11:00.001-07:00

Nvar is the most beautiful 8 year old I've ever met! Lately we've been lovingly referring to her as our "poster-child" because of how often we've posted this picture around, garnering all kinds of support. Her photos have attracted attention all over Facebook; two separate donors have put $500 or more toward her surgery costs. People seem drawn to her in ways that they haven't to other PLC kids (as far as I can tell).

Today I got to spend the day with her, playing games and learning colors in Kurdish and getting echocardiographs. What a crazy unreal experience! Playing hand-clap games with an Iraqi child whose heart is beating despite a huge whole in the bottom two chambers. In a few hours she'll go through an operation I can't even imagine, an operation I hope I never have.

She's is the bravest, silliest, most beautiful 8-year-old I've ever met. Please be praying for her!

Istanbul!

2010-07-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

After a 4am flight out of Iraq we arrived in Istanbul sometime around 11. I don't remember much of it because I passed out in every mode of transportation, but we're here! Most of the crew slept through the afternoon but we made it out to the Bosphorous Strait for a little swimming/feet dipping.

Turkey feels like a safe haven of comfort that I never want to leave. I didn't realize how "uncomfortable" I was in Iraq until I got here. Not that I was ever unhappy in Kurdistan, there's just something ultra familiar about Turkey and I feel so safe and happy.

Still miss Iraq, just a little.

Lighter heads for heavy hearts?

2010-07-17T11:21:00.000-07:00

A couple of nights ago Ben (another intern) came home saying there was smoke coming from our office building and it may be burning down. Claire, Alex and myself headed out immediately to see what was going on (the office is only a 5 minute walk from our house). When we got there this is what we saw (it was in fact, not our office but a hotel on the same block)....

I quickly snuck past all of the police tape as "media"

The riot squad showed up with shields, armor, automatic weapons, and tasers.

This woman was pleading with the police to show her one of the bodies they had recently pulled from the building. They sent her away.

I only saw 4 bodies lifted out of the the windows the entire hour and a half we were there.

60 of the 62 rooms were booked that night.

We were chased away (with the rest of the crowd) by police men with tasers. Seriously. If Iraq was in America it would be a lawsuit.

In the end, 29 people were killed and 40 were hospitalized.

That same night we learned that the piece Yahyah needs to replace the pulmonary valve he was born without won't arrive at the hospital in time for surgery.

Earlier that day a 14-year-old boy from Halabja had been in the office. 8 years before he was born, Saddam Hussein gassed his parent's village--killing 5,000 people in a single afternoon. Now, 22 years after that day, Saddam Hussein is ("indirectly") going to kill their son. Its incredible to me that more people aren't angered over this chain of events. When I met him, Joshua told me (aside, even though the boy doesn't understand English) "He's going to die." This boy who has lived 14 years is dying and inoperable.

A lot of heavy stuff this week. Tonight we go to Turkey though where we'll see 4 new kids receive life-saving surgery. Praise God.

Preemptive Love and the Second Generation of Genocide

2010-07-10T10:41:00.000-07:00

Since I've been here in Iraq I've been working toward a photo essay that could somehow mediate between the kids dying of congenital heart disease in Kurdistan and the rest of the world. Iraq's high number of children with heart disease is most frequently attributed to Saddam Hussein's chemical attacks, intrafamily marriage, and poor prenatal care. An underfunded, undereducated health care system perpetuates the problem.

Though all of these circumstances are intertwined, it's the first of these causes that compels me so strongly. Every kid I meet born with a hole in their heart reminds me that chemical warfare still rages. Every baby who turns blue when she starts to cry forces me to see the legacy that violence leaves behind. I hate this, I hate the repercussions of war that these children (and their parents) are forced to bear.

The Preemptive Love Coalition exists in opposition to these acts of war and in support of peace between communities, peoples, and nations at odds. Most tangibly, these goals manifest as life-saving heart surgeries for Iraqi children with congenital heart disease.

So this is it, as it stands now. Its not finalized but I wanted to put it out there and hear your thoughts. So please, critique...

Second Generation Genocide

An empty crib sits in Soziar Hamdan's living room. At 20 months old, Soziar has already had her first heart surgery, creating a shunt to re-route blood from her aorta to the pulmonary artery in efforts to bypass oxygen-poor blood from the heart directly to the lungs. In 5 years Soziar will need at least one more surgery to fully correct her multi-faceted condition.

Ahmed Bakhtyar, 10, aims a toy pistol at his mother in the living room. In addition to a large hole between the lower chambers of his heart, Ahmed was born with his major arteries reversed and without a pulmonary valve. The Preemptive Love Coalition sent him to surgery last summer but the single operation wasn't enough to heal his multiple complications. Though he is in desperate need of a second surgery, doctors are hesitant to address Ahmed's high risk condition as it is unlikely he will survive another operation and recovery.

Dr. Aso Faiq uses an echocardiograph to view an infant's heart. Dr. Aso is the only pediatric cardiologist in northern Iraq and he screens as many as 150 children a week for heart disease.

Yahyah Omar, right, plays a video game with his neighbor while his parents discuss treatment options for their son's heart conditions. The hole in the septum between his lower heart chambers is intensified by a reversed pulmonary artery and aorta. He was also born without a pulmonary valve; the replacement valve will cost his parents an extra $5000 alone.

Clubbing in the fingers and toes is one of the most obvious symptoms of a heart/lung defect. Malabsorption of oxygen into the blood stream causes this deformity, which worsens over time.

PLC sent Honya Mahdi to surgery in Turkey last December. She was born with a hole in between the bottom two chambers of her heart, known as a large ventricular septal defect (VSD). The patch-up was a relatively simple but urgent operation, if left alone she would have soon been inoperable. Today she is healthy and happy!

Though she is nearly two years old, Soziar Harmen still has not learned to walk. Heart defects stunt growth and development, largely due to a severe lack of oxygen to the brain. Soziar suffers from tricuspid atresia and a large ventricular septal defect (VSD), with severe artery stenosis.

Klash-maker, Kak Aram, is reflected in a mirror in his shoe store. Aram has worked with the Preemptive Love Coalition to sell handmade Kurdish shoes to fund heart surgeries for Iraqi kids for over a year. Aram is an invaluable asset to PLC as a shoemaker and an example of local solution to a growing problem.

Nvar Latif, 8, makes faces with her father while her brother looks off. Physical exhaustion from her 4-fold heart complication, Tetralogy of Fallot, forces Nvar to spend most of her day inside. The Preemptive Love Coaltion is funding her life-saving heart surgery in Istanbul this month, just in time for her 9th birthday.

-Lydia O'Neil Bullock

BFFL

2010-07-09T16:45:00.000-07:00

(L to R, Back Row: Josh Thompson, Daniel Buckley, Sophia Pappas, Benjamin Landis. Middle Row: Lauren Sawyer, Claire Baker, Alex Phillips, Preston Wright. Front Row: Me! and Esther Perez)

I love all of these people!

Football

2010-07-09T14:05:00.000-07:00

A few of the guy interns play soccer regularly at a local community soccer court. Tonight I went to take some pictures, here's what I got.

Introductions.

2010-07-09T09:03:00.000-07:00

We drove really far away for a house visit on Wednesday so I had plenty of time to take pictures of the Iraqi countryside. Its unbelievably beautiful. Let me introduce you! :)

Stopping to get gas...

There are cows everywhere, especially hanging out along the highways.

We stopped for tea on the way there and the way back.

There are shepherds scattered allll over, in mountains and valleys and along the roads. Its incredible.

Do you love it?

Dear America, Happy Birthday! Love, Iraq

2010-07-05T09:23:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July!

Weekend Funtimes

2010-07-04T06:14:00.000-07:00

Everyday here seems a little more like I unlimited time to hang out with my 10 best friends. I can't believe how much I love all of the other interns! We get to hang out and have fun all the time, whether at work or at home, we're always together and I love it. The weekends are almost a challenge because we don't get to go to work, so we have to find some other entertainment.

But sometimes ultra special occasions happen, and last weekend was Claire's birthday!

We went to Park Azadi and rode the ferris wheel, the bumper cars, got cotton candy, and even had a cake.

It was fantastic. :)

This weekend was Anna's first weekend here in Suly. She's from England and she's here to be a nanny for the Courtney's two kids.

We took her to the bazaare and had photo-scavengar hunt. Yesss.

Smoothies, Kurdish teens, Juli-Kurdi (traditional clothes): All things we had to find.

Crazy amounts of dress shoes!

Ok, not part of the hunt but my personal fave-- "STREET CORNET YOUTH DOES NOT STOP THE MUSIC DAY CLAP"

Find something obviously made in China.

Fun, fun weekends here in Kurdistan :) I'm definitely going to miss this.

An interesting day!

2010-06-28T16:06:00.001-07:00

Today I got to do a number of exciting things. First off, 2 home visits. This might be my favorite photo I've taken so far in Iraq! This little boy, Akhmed, went to surgery last year with PLC. Because of his heart condition he'll need a second surgery, but right now the doctors are unwilling to operate on him because he has a very high risk of dying.

Later in the afternoon I met up with some Kurdish girls I met at Children's Day. We went to the mall, got ice cream, and hung out for a couple hours before their parents came to pick them up. Yeah. My new Kurdish friends are all 14. No big.

Closin' my eyes.

So it was a fun day! :)

First step.

2010-06-27T06:34:00.000-07:00

"If you want to build a ship, don't drum up people to collect wood and don't assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea."
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

If you're willing, I want to teach you to love the sea that is the children of Iraq. Enough that you long to protect them, to save them. I want to show you the sea until you build a ship to reach what you love.

So this is my first step to teaching you this. I hope you like it, I hope you love her.

-Lydia

Is this life delicious?

2010-06-24T09:19:00.000-07:00

This tunnel runs underneath a highway outside of our office building here in Suly. We discovered it the first week or so of the internship and I think its safe to say its one of our favorite spots in the city. The entire length of the walls are covered floor to ceiling with multi-colored flyers with the same Kurdish phrase. It turns out the phrase translates to,

"Is this life delicious?"

More loosely, "is this life enough?" is this all you want?" Wow. What a crazy, strange tunnel. Needless to say, there's a tattoo in the planning ;)

So. That's all I have. Is your life delicious?

I'm ready to listen.

2010-06-20T04:42:00.000-07:00

Baby Honya, hiding behind her mother.

God addressed Job next from the eye of the storm, and this is what he said:

"I have some more questions for you,
and I want straight answers.

"Do you presume to tell me what I'm doing wrong?
Are you calling me a sinner so you can be a saint?
Do you have an arm like my arm?

Can you shout in thunder the way I can?

Go ahead, show your stuff.

Let's see what you're made of, what you can do.

Unleash your outrage.
Target the arrogant and lay them flat.
Target the arrogant and bring them to their knees.
Stop the wicked in their tracks—make mincemeat of them!
Dig a mass grave and dump them in it—
faceless corpses in an unmarked grave.

I'll gladly step aside and hand things over to you—
you can surely save yourself with no help from me!"

If you've never read the conversation between God and Job, take a few minutes and check it out.

The last chapters of Job have been some of my very favorite parts of the Bible for a long,long time. Basically, Job (and some of his friends) spend the first 38 chapters crying out to God for answers to suffering and injustice. Right at the very end God comes in, sassy as can be, demanding answers from Job! Instead of answering the way Job wants, God demands to know why he owes Job answers at all. Its the most wonderful, ranting, snarky response from the Creator of the Universe to this little guy on earth (very much like you and me!) and he doesn't hold back anything.

(If you didn't read it the first time--go back! take a second, read it and you'll understand)

Sometimes I feel a lot like Job! Not because of my life, but sometimes I just want answers for suffering. I want to know why things happen and why things don't happen and if things are going to change (if they are, when?). I want to do exactly what God is saying, "Target the arrogant and lay them flat.Target the arrogant and bring them to their knees, Stop the wicked in their tracks—make mincemeat of them!" I want to work to end injustice and hurt, and I want answers. I have a tendency to push my nose into matters I don't understand, blindly assuming my perception is all that exists in the matter.

Because sometimes I meet people like baby Gesh and her mother.

Gesh has heart disease (and cleft palate). Her mother's dealing with the reality that her baby girl is dying. Her tiny, beautiful daughter.

I feel like by this time in the summer some of you are thinking, "What did you think you signed up for? You're interning with an organization that helps kids with heart disease!"

And you're right! I should understand that the kids I meet are pretty much all very, very sick. But you haven't met Gesh. You haven't met her mother.

So I'm thankful that Job questioned God. Mostly I'm thankful he did it first, and I don't have to. I'm learning from Job's response to God, because I think he's right. He said:

"I'm convinced: You can do anything and everything.

Nothing and no one can upset your plans.
You asked, 'Who is this muddying the water,
ignorantly confusing the issue, second-guessing my purposes?'
I admit it. I was the one. I babbled on about things far beyond me,
made small talk about wonders way over my head.

So, sometimes I just need to remember that. Nothing and no one can upset God's plans. I know so little. Stop second-guessing God's purposes. Stop babbling about wonders that are way over my head.

"Surely I spoke of things I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me to know."
-Job 42:3

Somethings are better said by others.

2010-06-18T05:00:00.000-07:00

"Live in peace with each other.

And we urge you, brothers,

warn those who are idle,

encourage the timid,

help the weak,

be patient with everyone.

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always try to be kind to each other and to everyone else.

Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."

(did you catch that?)

"Do not put out the Spirit's fire; do not treat prophecies with contempt.

Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil.

May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it!"

(read that again! and again!)

"Brothers, pray for us."

1 Thessalonians 5: 14-25

"Children of my father"

2010-06-17T04:25:00.000-07:00

So this is Awara, our translator/invaluable political asset/entertainer (as well as full time PLC staff). I've mentioned him a couple of times before, he goes with us to most any and everything!

The times I am most glad he's around though are when we're dealing with anything legal. Awara helped us all get visas, blood tests, etc, etc, etc. We'd walk into endless lines in government offices and Awara would waltz in, negotiate some things, sign off, and we'd all file out with the necessary paperwork. Easy. Also, any problem (i.e., armed guards reaching into the car and taking my camera) is solved with a phone call from Awara to his father, who in turn makes a phone call to the President (or so I assume) and done. Camera: returned.

Basically, any problem we have can be fixed when Awara says his full name (which I won't here, for privacy). Such is his father's influence in this country! Awara's father owns multiple houses, cars, companies. His influence extends socially, politically, economically. He also has a heart for the children of Iraq who are dying of heart disease. Convenient for PLC, eh?

I'm explaining this because two nights ago Awara told us something interesting. He explained that we (the interns) were "all children of his father". At first I thought this was another flowery Kurdish phrase. But, he actually meant exactly what he said. His uber-influential father legally registered 10 additional children into his family, just for us this summer. There is a "Lydia _____ " legally registered in the region of Kurdistan. And its me. And for all legal, political purposes I am to be treated as his daughter.

How cool?

Attribute it to the 18 years of Sunday school I have tucked away, but I instantly thought about the way God calls us children in 1 John.

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!"

I don't have any earthshaking insights, but I thought it was pretty great.

I promise more pictures on the next blog!

Xua Hafiz!*

Lydia

*("Go with God", aka, "Goodbye" in Kurdi!)

Observations

2010-06-16T09:03:00.000-07:00

There are a lot of things about Iraq that are very similar to the States. Cars, music, clothes, food (yeah...kind of), people; everything's just been Eastern-ized. Or maybe we Western-ized it, not sure.

But there are the subtle differences.

For instance.

There are two different kinds of electricity here, "national" and "community". They both have their scheduled hours of operation and for all but 2 hours a day we have electricity! National power is stronger and can handle the AC-units we're so blessed to use, as well as the washer and treadmill (not all at the same time, mind you).

National power cuts out for about 7 hours a day and we switch over to Community. Community power is run by a switchboard and a little man somewhere on our block.

During community hours we conserve as much electricity as possible. Community becomes less stable as it gets hotter outside. This week the temperature has hovered around and above 110 degrees. Therefore, we've been very careful about our electricity! Its completely normal for the power/internet/lights to cut out and come back on a dozen times in an afternoon.

We all sit quietly in the office while we wait for whatever we were doing to come back. It used to be frustrating. I think at this point it would be more unusual to have the internet consistently for hours on end.

Sometimes if we're doing something extremely internet-dependent we choose to go to local cafes in hopes their power is stronger than ours, but its not at all unusual for them to be waiting to turn on their internet until their community power changes (electricity is very localized here in Kurdistan). The power regularly cuts out in restaurants, churches, schools, coffee houses, etc. Basically, with electricity the only thing you can really count on is that you can't count on it.

But its fine! The whole country manages to shuffle the electricity schedules and make it work. Its pretty remarkable.

(Neither of those pictures mean anything spectacular, just a couple of random shots from out and around the city!)

Water. We usually have water, and I don't really understand why and when we don't. But somedays we don't do the dishes and we can't take showers because there isn't any water running.

Also the toilets don't always flush, sometimes you just pour a bucket of water in the toilet and its like flushing.

We still don't have a shower head, but that still doesn't seem like such a big deal.

Mom, Dad. I shower at least twice a week. Promise!

Alright I feel like I'm complaining an awful lot and there are far too few pictures to make this worthwhile! I promise all of my complaints are in jest and its fun to have life be a bit more challenging on this side of the globe.

Lovelovelove,

Lydia

A few portraits.

2010-06-14T02:47:00.000-07:00

"...or till the last of those bad thoughts are finally out."

2010-06-11T07:12:00.000-07:00

I think this is going to be a very long blog post...but you'll be rewarded with photos the whole way through! So stick with me, if you have the time and patience.

I'm trying to write this linearly, because that seems most logical. Tuesday night we went to the home of Ismail Kayat, a local artist with a fervent desire to see peace for Kurdistan. Kak Ismail has seen his country from the earliest days of Saddam Hussein, through Hussein's "arabization" attempts, through the chemical Anfal attacks, through the Gulf War, through whatever the last 10 years have been, and today. Can you imagine? Every decade of his life has seen a new form of violence in his homeland.

Most of his work in the last 20-odd years has been a response to the chemical bombing of Kurdistan (aka, the Anfal campaign). He has a vision of painting a mask/face for every one of the 182,000 Kurds murdered by Saddam Hussein's regime.

Truly incredible depth of inspiration and purpose, I'm completely humbled by being in his presence. How audacious can my desire to show the world another side of Iraq be, next to his? I know nothing, he's lived everything. Its a terrible, wonderful feeling to talk with someone who knows infinitely more than you do about something you're genuinely interested in.

On Wednesday, I got to visit the hospital and meet Dr. Aso, the solitary pediatric cardiologist in all of Iraqi Kurdistan. He is a close friend of PLC's and will be key to the Remedy campaign this August.

This baby has Downs Syndrome, and a heart condition called Single Ventricle heart disease. Basically, her heart isn't divided, so both the pure and impure blood are mixing through one main area of her heart. 2/3 of babies with this condition will see their first birthday, only 1 in 3 will see their tenth.

And again, Dr. Aso is the only pediatric cardiologist in Kurdistan. In the time we were in his office the line of patients waiting to see him never slowed. The heart conditions these children shoulder are stuff of nightmares for parents in the States. And they're no less horrific for mothers and fathers here in Iraq.

Parents who read this: Consider doing for someone else's child what you would do for your own.

Also on Wednesday, Josh and I started a new series about pharmacies here in Iraq. I was thinking along the lines of Ed Ruscha's 26 Gasoline Stations, which is a series I LOVE. It didn't quite work out that way, but we spent a few hours photographing in and around some pharmacies here.

We'll continue it over the next week or so and hopefully have a cohesive result.

Ok, close you eyes. Pretend you're taking a prescription to have it filled.

Are you going here? It's still hard to think of life here as reality.

When I got back, baby Abdul Kareem was in the office. I'm using some photos of him and his father as a mini-campaign for Father's Day. Abdul is dying of heart disease. This might be the last Father's Day he'll ever see.

Consider giving to a child's surgery fund instead of that new grill, hammock, lawn mower, or whatever fantastic gift you had planned for your dad! :)

Thursday (yesterday) I went on two follow-up home visits to kids who have already had heart surgery. The first, Honya.

A beautiful 15-month-old girl who had surgery in December. Though she's recovered perfectly, her growth was so stunted that she still doesn't have any teeth. Her parents lovingly refer to her as "grandma" :)

The second home visit was to a 10-year old boy named Mohammed. This is the house he lives in with his parents and two siblings. (The car is ours)

They invited us in where we sat and talked with his family. Mohammed showed of his scar (come on, he's a boy)

And his mother fed us cucumbers and watermelon, "lime drink" (picture Jell-O before it's congealed) and baklava. So much hospitality in this country!!

Mohammed has 14 chickens that he raised himself, from eggs. So crazy cool! I don't know any 10 year olds who can do that.

I left his home not sure what to think. Both he and Honya live within a half hour from Halabja, the city that suffered the most concentrated attack by Saddam Hussein. I can't say this with absolute medical authority, but it would seem that their health conditions are most likely related. How do you deal with something like that? As a parent, a sibling, a victim? How would you justify your feelings toward your government? Or toward the rest of the world, who's eyes have turned away from a suffering yours never can.

It was definitely better meeting two kids who are healthy as a result of Preemptive Love in Iraq, instead of children who are dying. There is hope for peace-making, even in the wake of genocide.

Now a much, much lighter note! We left Mohammed's and drove back to the city. Awara and I went straight to Kak Aram's shoemaking-shop (remember Brain Soup? same guy) where my, one-of-a-kind, first ever, female Klash were waiting!

Soooo cute! Honestly I didn't do anything for these, I was just extremely blessed to be the guinea pig. Preston and Ben (two other interns) did all of the work in designing and planning, they just needed a girl to fit the shoes.

Also...rumor has it they're going to be called "Klashi Lydia", which might be the coolest thing that's ever happened to me. They might not be though, so don't get your hopes up.

Yeah, I'm in love. Pre-orders will happen soon, for those of you who are interested.

So. I think you're all caught up to speed, at least for now. The title of this blog is from an Avett Brother's song titled, "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise" and I really like the lyrics. Story of my life right now. Lots of thoughts going on, lots of hope for the rest of the summer.

Have a beautiful Friday! Please be praying for these kids and Iraq.

Love,

Lydia

In Defense of Fathers (Day)

2010-06-09T04:05:00.000-07:00

Because some fathers risk losing their reason to celebrate.

www.preemptivelove.org/remedy

Blood Bank

2010-06-07T21:54:00.001-07:00

My day, in pictures:

1. Spend hours waiting in clinic for blood tests.

2. akjdlakjdlkajdalkj

3. Iraqi visa!

Love,

Lydia

For all I know, there's more I don't. (Oh, the little I have learned!)

2010-06-06T07:51:00.000-07:00

Today was my very first house visit.

Ready?

Meet Mohammed. 2 years old, dying from heart disease.

At 9 kg, Mohammad hasn't gained weight in over a year. His parents can't afford the surgery necessary to save their son's life.

Today we went to talk with his parents about Mohammed's health and their finances. Through miscommunications, they've lost the $6,000 loan they thought they had secured for his surgery.

I'm not sure if I've ever been in a room with someone who was literally dying. I never expected the first time to be a 2-year-old Iraqi boy.

Kurds are huge on hospitality. Before we left they gave us plates of grapes and cucumbers. Its humbling to receive so much from people who have so little.

Its hard to know how to respond to little Mohammed. In my own life I would say "Don't worry about it, I'm sure it'll all work out." and be completely confident in my insurance company, parent's wallet, extended family's gifts, and a strong network of prayer. So I'm inclined to think that any situation, no matter how destitute, will eventually be made right. It's hard to fully grasp that that is completely not the case for this little boy and his parents. They're relying heavily on PLC right now to take their son to surgery, to save his life. But even that might not be enough. His medicine has become more complicated (mostly because he refuses to take it, I guess 2-year-olds are the same everywhere) and their money has nearly run out. This family has no "fall back" plan, no money set aside for emergencies.

Today was a significant day in my Iraqi-living learning curve. For a couple of reasons that all center around my personal reactions to gender-specific dress codes and expectations in this culture. For the first time since I've been here, I was genuinely angered by a new standard that would forever forward be expected of me. I've been stewing about double standards and inequality all evening....but I can't anymore.

So pray for Mohammed. Pray for his parents and their financial stability (or capability). Because I know a lot of 2-year-olds, but now I know one more. And so do you.

So pray for this one.

Best Birthday Ever?

2010-06-03T12:28:00.001-07:00

Started out with a surprise birthday/coffee cake by Sophie and Alex:

Then we took a bus...

out to Halabja to see the memorial for the chemical attacks. Interesting way to spend a birthday, but its what I've been looking forward to seeing the most here in Iraq. I could write a very spirited entry about war and genocide and money and genetic disease and kids who will die because of these things...but I won't today. Just read the wiki-article.

When we finished at the memorial we picnic'ed and hiked up to a waterfall in the mountains. SO BEAUTIFUL. Its the exact same trail that those hikers were on last summer when they crossed into Iran. We were about a mile and a half from the border! Prettty awesome.

They actually assigned us a guard to police us as we walked up the mountain, so that we didn't get off the path.

It was so, so hot outside and Kurds get dressed up for outings. So we were all in our semi-business-casual, which is fun but not easy for hiking.

Here's me, Claire and Preston with Iran behind us.

Also, apparently today was the deadline to get my paperwork taken care of to be in the country. So I am officially an illegal immigrant! Cool!

An all-around FANTASTIC day.

2010-06-01T11:50:00.000-07:00

Happy June the 1st! Its also Children's Day here in Iraq (and around the world) so today we went to this park and flew kites with Kurdish kids! It was way more fun than I ever expected (Children's Day isn't exactly a thrilling concept for someone who doesn't like children) and we had a blast.

After work a group of us went to Park Azadi for more Children's Day festivities! Sooo many people in the park. Its seriously such a beautiful place to hang out.

Sunlight + Sand = Sky.

Preston and I went on a quest for cotton candy and were hugely successful. Iraqis LOVE sweets, there are endless opportunities for ice cream and popsicles and cotton candy all over the place.

The otherside of Park Azida is a mini-Disneyland. It has a few rides and bumper cars and more cotton candy. They let me and Preston in for free because we had cameras and said we were just taking pictures, which was great!

Hope you like the pictures!

Lydia

Shoemakers and Brain Soup

2010-05-30T21:32:00.000-07:00

Today I went with Preston, Ben (two interns) and Awara (our well-connected Kurdish leader) to meet with Kakaram about Klash. Kaka is a shoemaker in the bazaar who works closely with PLC to sell shoes to fund heart surgery. If any of you remember those crazy Kurdish shoes I bought last fall, this is the guy who made them.

We're talking with him about developing a more feminine pair of Klash that might be more popular to westerners. This is where Kakaram is very, very special because Klash are traditional Kurdish shoes that ONLY men wear (and probably 2 out of 3 men you see still wear them) Visiting him was great!

Afterwards we had lunch. I love so much the way they do meals here. Everything is served with these huge pieces of flat bread, sometimes on the floor, sometimes on a table...anywhere! We had to eat back here in Kakaram's store because I'm not allowed to eat in the cafes in the bazaar (especially with 4 men).

For lunch? Brain soup! Its called "Serapay" and this version is a soup with brain, tongue, foot, and "mid-region" pieces of meat in a oil-y broth. Mmmm! :)

I lovelovelovelovelovelove that you always get a little cup of tea after every meal. People drink tea constantly. Correction: men drink tea constantly. Women aren't allowed in tea houses or coffee shops most of the time. In a house, you'll be served tea but not normally in public. I think it was ok this time for me because we were sitting in Kakaram's shop and not out on the street.

Fun times in Park Azida

2010-05-29T06:39:00.000-07:00

Fun story from tonight:

There's a huge park here called "Park Azida" which means "Park Freedom". They called it that because its on the same grounds that Saddam Hussein used as his headquarters 30 years ago! Land that used to hold offices, prisons, barracks, mass graves...is now a park where Kurdish folks walk, picnic, and socialize.

To clarify--MEN socialize with MEN and women socialize with women. Its completely common to see same-gender hand holding, arm linking, etc. Men and women can be arrested for being alone together if they're not married. Seriously. So both genders are very affectionate to each other.

Tonight, me, Preston, and Alex decided to go hang out in Park Azida. Which is great fun if you ignore the stares, glaring looks, and stink-eyes from pretty much everyone we pass. To clarify, its very strange for Westerners to be there as it is. Its especially strange for a girl to be alone with two guys. Not only is it strange, but its also offensive. Kurdish women perceive my presence as "showing off" in front of their husbands and families. Bottom line: people notice us.

Now the story:

We're sitting at a table and this girl (about my age) walks up and stands nervous/excitedly in front of me. We make it through a broken English conversation about if I'm from America (or Britain) and where I got my earrings because they looks Kurdish. She pauses, still smiling and nodding. Then she goes, "I think you are so nice!" and asks, "Can I take you?" then grabs my hand and leads me over to her friend. At this point Alex and Preston are both laughing and we have no idea whats going on. So I take a picture with her and her friend, before the guys come over and take this picture on our camera. Now there's a mini-crowd around us and they're writing down their names and phone numbers. (All the while holding my hand, remember). As we're walking away from our new friends, the first girl runs after us and gives me a rose!

So, fun evening in Park Azida! Lots of time spent at the bazaar today too, maybe photos from that later.

Lydia

Our Happy Home

2010-05-28T03:55:00.000-07:00

I thought you all might want to see some photos from where I'm living in Iraq! Basically, we (myself and the 8 other interns, plus 1 intern leader) invaded the home of Jessica and Jeremy Courtney (and their two children) who are the wonderful co-founders of the Preemptive Love Coalition. Plus they have Josh Gigs (their photo intern from last summer) living with them at the moment. So all in all, there are 15 of us living in 4 bedrooms (more like 3 and a half plus the roof), sharing 2 bathrooms. Here goes!

This is our home. Welcomeee :)

The kitchen is right when you first walk in.

Huge kitchen is great for getting dinner together for 15 people. We were paired up and each night a different two people make dinner, another pair cleans up, and another pair makes breakfast the next day.

This is the living room where we all kind of hang out. Scrabble, blogging, reading, movie-watching, extravaganza.

This is where the 5 of us girl interns sleep/live. Mine's the yellow one that no one's sleeping in!

There are no shower heads here. Which sounded like an absurd impossibility when I first heard it, but now I'm convinced shower heads are totally unnecessary. I haven't exactly taken a shower yet, but I've washed my hair twice. Its way faster to just wash hair than it is to wash your whole body. Especially because no one can tell you haven't taken a shower. Except that I just wrote it in my blog.

There's a quick tour. I'll try to post more photos later and some of the interns too! Right now the internet is being a bit spotty. For now, check out PLC's Facebook page for some other photos I've taken!

Happy Friday from Kurdistan!

Love,

Lydia

Kurdish Police? 0 for 2

2010-05-27T01:28:00.000-07:00

I had my camera taken by men with automatic weapons for the second time today. Fortunately, Awara (our Kurdish PLC leader) has really, really great family connections to the government. He called his uncle, who called the head of police (or someone) and they gave it back. AFTER deleting the photos I'd snuck at the checkpoint. Which was actually a huge blessing because apparently its not uncommon for them to just smash a camera on the ground to delete the photos. Yikes.

Anyhow. Got to do a little shooting in a Kurdish hospital today! We were checking out their respirators. So nothing too crazy, but it was good to get the atmosphere.

This is a respirator. It saves kids' lives.

Little blue shoe guards we had to wear in the ICU.

More later!

Welcome to Iraq!

2010-05-26T04:14:00.000-07:00

Day One, exploring the Bazaar....

but first, the rules:

1. Don't look men in the eye

2. Don't talk to men, don't talk too loudly

3. If you need to address a man, get one of the guys to talk for you.

4. Don't take pictures of "important" buildings. (...)

So that was yesterday. Walking around the city, ending with a picnic in the park! Iraq is awesome. And a lot safer than I expected, I had my 5D out and shooting the entire time.

Today we've been in the PLC office, brainstorming for what the rest of the summer will look like. We have short term things (daily blog/photos) and long term (getting ready for PLC's fall tour!) projects to plan as well as visiting families in surrounding villages 4 days a week. The great part is I pretty much get to do everything! Or at least be along for the ride. I'll also be doing a "big picture" weekly photo blog and a series for the new Remedy campaign. 30 kids, 30 days.

Enough writing from me for now, but look into Remedy! Its an amazing opportunity to make your money count for something a little more.

Lovelovelove

Lydia

Ramblin'

2010-05-25T10:56:00.000-07:00

So I left Cinci for Detroit Sunday evening, from there hopped on a plane and got into Amsterdam around noon on Monday!

This is Amsterdam. They have lots and lots of bikes. Also, I think we mistranslated the word "coffee" somewhere down the line...it means something totalllllyy different in Dutch.

From there I flew to Istanbul, got in around 1am. Caught a cab to the hotel where I met Lauren (one of the other interns) and we left Istanbul around noon for Iraq. That's the fast-forward version of my travels :)

Tomorrow will include lots of cool pictures. The internet here is having a hard time handling the uploads, so I think I'm giving up. Later!

Big Time in the Jungle

2010-05-22T21:08:00.000-07:00

So I know its not exactly to scale...but you get the picture. Ohio to Iraq, starting today! Prayers for my travel there would be great, I won't be in Kurdistan until Tuesday afternoon. Which means that there is an awful lot of time and opportunity for things to go wrong :)

Goodbye midwest, hello middle East!

2010-05-18T21:08:00.000-07:00

Hello all!

In 5 days I'll be standing in an airport in Istanbul, 36 hours into my travels to the middle east. Soon after, I'll be on a flight into Sulaymaniyah, Iraq. 9 weeks later, I'll be back in Turkey and 1 week away from home/Cinci.

How/what/why/etc? I'll be interning with the Preemptive Love Coalition, a fantastic group of people working to eradicate the waiting list of Kurdish children in need of heart surgery. Congenital heart disease (CHD) is rampant in northern Iraq as a repercussion of Saddam Hussein's chemical genocide against the Kurds in the 1980s. These children are testimonies to the blind power of hatred, greed and nerve gas to stretch into generations. My generation. PLC exists to get kids into operating rooms to heal their unhealthy hearts. They participate in peace-making discussions among enemies, praying and working toward a more unified Iraq. Love wins.

I'm sure the time will fly by but hopefully this blog'll keep you up to date on my adventures until I'm back!

Lovelovelove

Lydia O'Neil Bullock