Who am I?
“Abuela, me voy a mudar a Palestina.” “Grandma, I’m moving to Palestine.”
“Pero que Chuchi? Te vas a Arabia Saudita?” “What Chuchi? You’re going to Saudi Arabia?”
“Noo abuela, no a Arabia Saudita pero un lugar cerca de alla" “No grandma, not to Saudi Arabia, but to a place nearby.”
“Deja eso chica, tu esta loca!” “Leave that alone girl, you’re crazy!”
So, you all may be a bit confused, stepping into this conversation. This is what I first told my grandma when I received a Fulbright fellowship to the West Bank/Palestinian Territories in the spring of 2018. As you can see from my abuela’s (grandma's) reaction, I received some resistance from my family on my decision to move across the globe to live and teach in a place that seemed very different from our own way of life and culture. But, I can say now after living here for six months, it has been one of the most rewarding, eye-opening and enriching experiences of my life.
Before I tell you all about my current journey, I think that it’s important to know a bit about my journey leading up to my current journey. My name is Elizabeth, but I go by “Liz” among friends and “Chuchi” among my family.
