In a few minutes, my wife would emerge with a newborn in her hands. My heart starting beating very fast, and that gave me the energy to receive my first baby.
I learned at school that a newborn will not be able to open its eyes until it is two weeks old, but my newborn could open his eyes and watch us as already, as if he is in a big shock. I think this is natural as he can match the sounds that he used to hear in his mother’s womb with our faces. We headed home with joy as we had become a father, mother and newborn.
Our joy did not last long. The Jordanian government decided to go after illegal foreign workers and this directly affected since I was working there illegally. I came as a refugee as therefore was not allowed to work in Jordan. I was getting food stamps from the UN Refugee Organization for a total value of 48 Jordanian Dinars, and now they raised it to 72 Jordanian Dinars since we became a family of three. This is equivalent to US$100 a month.
Age: 26
Country of Origin: Syria
Host Country: Germany
Civil Status: Married to Alaa, with two children (wife and children in Jordan)