This heartbreaking story reflects the a
real life experience of fatherless girl who
was married off to a strange man by her
mother at 15.
In her heart wrenching story that will surely
bring tears to your eyes, she narrates how
her life was suddenly turned around as a
teenagers and the things she went through
as a young bride
If you are just joining the story, read the first
part here.
My mom said we’d be gone for a month, but
I didn’t trust her. On the way to the airport, I
asked to see my return ticket. I wanted
proof that it existed. She was indignant as
she showed me the ticket, but it made me
feel better.
My mother and grandmother and I landed in
Tel Aviv, which was as hot and dusty as I
remembered. I felt claustrophobic in the
cab, which we took to Ramallah, the
Palestinian capital. My grandmother has a
house there, and both of my sisters lived
nearby.
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forced into marriage
I was so angry about being there that I
wasn’t even excited to see my sisters. I
couldn’t believe that they’d left me all those
years before. Now, they were both married
with kids. But by the end of that first evening,
I relaxed with them. I even told them what
happened with my Chipotle date, and they
started teasing me, like, “You’re such an
idiot! With a white guy? Really?”
They thought that if he’d been Muslim, I
wouldn’t have gotten into so much trouble. I
wasn’t so sure, but it still felt good to laugh
with them about it.
About two weeks into our stay, my sisters sat
me down and started doing my hair and
makeup. I was never allowed to wear
makeup at home, so I thought it was cool.
When I asked why, they said they wanted
me to meet a friend of theirs.
Their friend was in his twenties but still lived
with his mom, which my sister called “a
problem.” I didn’t understand what she
meant by that.
He arrived with his mom and uncle and
started speaking to me in Arabic. I barely
understood anything except for his asking
me how old I was.
I said, “I’m 15. I just finished 8th grade.”
He looked perplexed. So was I.
After he left, I asked my sisters what the
meeting was about. They explained that the
way to meet suitors is through families.
When a family thinks a girl is ready to be
married — usually she’s part of that decision
— they pass word along to other families
that they’re looking for a husband. The
couple then meets through the parents, and
if it is a good match, an arrangement is
made.
A week passed, and once again my sisters
sat me down and started putting makeup on
me. They said that another guy was coming
to meet me. When I asked, who?
They said, “Don’t worry about it. Just have
fun.”
The doorbell rang and in walked a guy with
his parents. I’m 5’8″ and he was 5’4″, nine
years older, and missing half of his front left
tooth. Everyone seemed very eager. I was
repulsed.
I sat stone-faced the entire time they were
there. As soon as he and his family left, my
mom and grandmother said that they
thought I should marry him. They said, “He
has a job and a house.” That’s all it took.
I was furious. By then, I realized that they’d
brought me to Palestine to get married and
planned to leave me there. Instead of
berating them, I immediately started thinking
of ways to return home on my own. I had
watched SVU. I knew this was totally illegal. I
just needed to figure out a way to reach a
detective in Illinois who could help me
escape.
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I also knew then that I couldn’t trust my
sisters — anytime I complained to them,
they’d just say, “It’s not so bad! You’ll learn to
love him!”
He and I met two more times that week and
each time, I hoped he’d figure out that I was
being coerced. But then, during that third
visit, all the men went into one room while
the women stayed in another.
My sister, mother, and grandmother were
chatting with his mother and sisters when I
heard the men read the engagement
passage from the Koran, which announces a
marriage.
Startled, I said to my sisters, “What are they
doing?”
My oldest sister said, “They’re reading the
passage.”
I shouted, “No!” and fought back tears.
My worst nightmare was becoming a
terrifying reality. I ran into the bathroom,
curled into a ball, and dissolved into tears.
How could my family do this to me? I
thought about running away, but how? My
mother had my passport. I had no money. I
was stuck. I started thinking about different
ways to die. Anything was better than this.
After his family left, I could no longer contain
my rage at my mother. “How could you do
this to me? I am your daughter!” I shouted.
Tears were streaming down my face. I could
see my mom was upset, too — she was
crying, shaking her head. I think she felt bad
about it, but she also felt like it was the best
option. I felt so betrayed.
And just then, my grandmother marched into
the room and slapped me. “Don’t disrespect
your mother!” she said, before turning to my
mother and saying, “See? She needs this.
How else will she learn to be respectful?’
That’s when I learned that my grandmother
had set the whole thing up. She’d met this
man’s family at a mall the same week I met
him! His parents owned a restaurant and
spotted us shopping. They approached her
to see if I was an eligible bride for their son.
She told them yes, but that I had to be
married before she flew back to the States.
He had no other prospects, so they were
excited I was one.
I never liked my grandmother, but I didn’t
hate her until that moment.
The wedding was planned for September
30th, a week and a half away. I was still
desperately trying to figure a way out of it. I
told my mom, “I’ll find a way to leave.” She
replied, “Either you marry him or someone
way older who won’t be as nice.”
My sisters said the same. “You’re lucky.” As
much as I dreaded what was happening,
they made the alternative sound even
worse.
A few days before the wedding, my oldest
sister finally revealed that she was also
married against her will. “I was kicking and
screaming the whole way,” she told me. “But
I learned to love him. You will too.”
I don’t remember the ceremony —
everything is such a blur — but I do
remember pulling away when he tried to kiss
my cheek and my mother hissing, “Kiss his
cheek!” I refused.
At the end of the wedding party, both of my
sisters were so excited about my first night
with him. They even said, “Text us
afterwards!”
I hated them.
The first night was awful. The only thing I’m
thankful for is that my husband was not a
violent or aggressive man. It could have
been so much worse. I get terrible migraine
headaches brought on by stress, and I used
them to my advantage in the weeks that
followed.
He took that first week off of work and we
spent most of it with his family. I did the best
I could to tolerate being around him and his
family while I tried to figure a way out of this
mess. To do that, I needed to get on the
internet.
When he went back to his job as a mechanic,
he’d be gone by 9am. I’d get up, have
breakfast and go to his mom’s house to help
her clean and make dinner. She had a
computer, so one day, I asked if I could use it
to talk to my mother and she agreed.
Instead, I logged onto Facebook and
messaged a friend from 3rd grade and told
her where I was and what had happened.
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She wrote back immediately, “That’s illegal!”
Once again, I knew that, but I didn’t know
what to do.
I had another friend I met through Facebook
who lived in Texas. He was Muslim. I told
him what happened, and he wrote, ‘You
need to call the embassy!’ He even sent the
number.
My heart was pounding as I wrote it in a
piece of paper and shoved it into my pocket.
On October 14th, I was in our apartment in
the afternoon when I finally worked up the
nerve to call. I used the Nokia flip phone my
husband gave me to talk to him and my
sisters.
An American-sounding man answered the
phone and I blurted, “I’m a U.S. citizen. My
parents brought me here against my will to
marry a man. I want to go home.”
To be continued…
UNDER MAINTENANCE