I arrived in Lebanon in May 2013. I came from al-Quassayr in Syria. I passed the border to Lebanon walking, taking the way through the mountains on foot. When I ran away from home with my 3 daughters I did not take anything with me except for a change of clothes for my children. This was the only thing I thought about. However on the way through the mountains I had to throw away even this one bag containing their clothes since it was hard for me to carry 2 little girls, one 5 years old and the other 6, and holding hand of the third one walking beside me. So finally I had no choice but to throw away the only little bag I took with me. I did not even bring our papers so we had to run through the mountains in fear of the checkpoints and the border guards. I did not have any money. I had nothing but my girls. We stayed for 2 nights in the streets of Arsal before I borrowed some money from people there. There are lots of good-hearted people. God does not leave you in distress. My husband was not able to come with us at the same time. He followed 2 or 3 months later. When we left al-Quassayr the bombs were falling on houses. The strike hit the first house, right next to ours. When the first building got hit we ran out. We were barely outside when a second strike hit our house. It hit right behind us. You could hear it and see it with your own eyes.
In one of the towns we stayed after leaving al-Quassayr we were guests of my uncle, who is also my father-in-law. One day he got ready for prayer and went out. When he was on his way back a shell hit him and he dies. My brothers stayed for a while in al-Quassayr before they left as well and now they are in Arsal. We are all trying to work. My husband goes to Beirut and all of us work in the fields in exchange for a small pay. My husband had paid the fees for getting us here with the children.
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