Rabia
Rabia's comments on permanence highlight an uncertain sense of time - coupled with a committed belief in some sort of future, albeit unknown - for refugees:
"Well, we don't know how long we are staying here. We could be staying here for three more years or twenty more years, so when we plant (the garden), it makes us feel alive. I started planting and fixing the caravan the day I got here. Even if I do not stay here for a long time, someone will make use of the plants after I leave."
"When you sit in a private house, it is different than living in a caravan. We cannot compare it to our home. The most important thing is that we are (safe here). That we sleep without fear. I held a birthday party for my granddaughter, and we invited the whole neighborhood! These are the things that we do to keep us going."
Gardening is a powerful activity which many of the Syrian refugees interviewed as part of the Making Home Away project cited as key to their emotional health and sense of self - click on the tags 'Garden' and 'Flowers' to the left to find more stories of refugees putting down roots. The Lemon Tree Trust was founded to support refugee gardening initiatives, with the aim of reaching refugees across the world.
