Donna Schumann | Gaza Delegation

Today we celebrate Eide, the day after the last day of Ramadan. I celebrate because I no longer need to duck under tables and behind counters to drink water “discreetly” between sunrise and sunset, It is the equivalent of Christmas Day for most Americans, if most Americans were more reverent and family oriented. People dress in their finest clothes and visit each other, bringing small symbolic gifts such as sweets to share.

People walk everywhere – small groups of very young girls wander down the streets together, no doubt watched from a short distance by a caring family member. And small “gangs” of 5-7 year-old boys run around playing the equivalent of cops and robbers with their friends. It reminds me of the American culture my father described from his childhood, and close to my childhood in Ohio in the late 50′s and early 60′s. Parents felt safer letting their children play, knowing that their neighbors and family would watch out for them. And the kids walk up to our group of strange foreigners, a little shy. When I ask if I can take their picture, they usually say yes. And then more and more kids want their picture taken, with a few, usually boys, really hamming it up. They smile or laugh at my clumsy attempts at Arabic, but are very polite and shake my hand. And there are usually smiling adults watching and smiling at us.