{"id":16607,"date":"2025-08-14T12:46:33","date_gmt":"2025-08-14T16:46:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cnewa.org\/ca\/?p=16607"},"modified":"2025-08-14T12:46:34","modified_gmt":"2025-08-14T16:46:34","slug":"we-are-real-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cnewa.org\/ca\/we-are-real-people\/","title":{"rendered":"We Are Real People"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Living in Gaza during this war has been incredibly difficult \u2014 constant bombing, displacement, hunger and fear have become part of daily life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In these conditions, diseases have started to spread rapidly, especially with the lack of clean water, food and proper sanitation. I have been diagnosed with hepatitis and I need proper nutrition and medical care, but do without. There aren\u2019t even the most basic things that could help me cope with the illness, such as sugar, for example, something that could give my body even a small boost of energy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

No medicine. Not even safe drinking water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the most painful part? Reaching a point where you feel as if a burden, as if you\u2019re asking for something impossible, when it\u2019s just the bare minimum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My body gets weak so fast \u2014 constant fatigue, feeling lightheaded, and this heavy feeling I am always on the edge of collapse, not just from illness, but from hunger, too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I am not alone. There are children, women, the elderly \u2014 all facing the same thing. Food is scarce. Aid isn\u2019t enough. Every meal becomes a calculation: How to stretch what little we have for as long as possible?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The church became our only shelter. They tried to help \u2014 distributing food, providing water, and offering a place to sleep. But the needs were far greater than the resources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We started counting pieces of bread, saving portions for later, trying to make everything last just a bit longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hearing someone say, \u201cThere\u2019s a food package,\u201d felt like a treasure. But even that was short-lived, and the need has never stopped.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I work in social services \u2014 my job is to be with people, listen to them, support them, follow up with them. But because of the war, I\u2019m currently unable to go to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The bombings, the fear, the unstable situation \u2014 every day brings a new tragedy, a new loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no safety. No space to meet beneficiaries. No way to move freely. And the most heartbreaking part? Many of the people I used to follow up with \u2014 they\u2019re gone. People I knew, people I supported from afar or through communication \u2014 are now just names and photos.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The strikes on Gaza didn\u2019t just destroy buildings \u2014 they shattered souls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The strikes have flipped our lives upside down. Nothing feels certain \u2014 not the future, not even the present. Even the places we once thought were safe, like churches, have not been left untouched.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Orthodox Church of St. Porphyrios was bombed twice<\/a>. And each time, we lost people \u2014 our family members, friends, neighbors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Latin Church of the Holy Family was also hit twice<\/a>. And both times felt like a deep wound, not just to the walls, but to our spirits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We started feeling as if there\u2019s no safe place left. No home. No street. Not even a church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Psychologically, we\u2019re drained. Constant stress. Fear. Loss after loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And it seems like this isn\u2019t ending anytime soon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Honestly, we\u2019re exhausted. Worn out. We\u2019ve been stretched thin \u2014 emotionally, mentally, physically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And food? Even if it exists \u2014 we can\u2019t afford it. Prices are sky-high. There\u2019s no cash flow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019ve been surviving on canned food, and our bodies can\u2019t take it anymore. It\u2019s affecting our health \u2014 nutritionally, physically, emotionally. Our stomachs hurt, our strength is fading, and the pain is now both inside and out.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m recording this today to make sure our voices are heard to show that hunger isn\u2019t just a number, and bombings aren\u2019t just background noise on a TV screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are real people, living through all of this \u2014 with our bodies, our pain, our stories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hunger, illness, fear, deep sadness and loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I\u2019m one of these stories, still holding on, we\u2019re surviving simply because we must.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click below to support CNEWA\u2019s emergency campaign in Gaza.<\/p>\n\n\n

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