Meet Esmatullah!

Esmatullah is a frequent visitor at One Happy Family. “I come to relax my mind”. I really appreciate and enjoy having a place to come outside of the camp. Inside the camp you see many people facing difficult times and problems. People wait for so long for an answer to their case and children lack education and entertainment, which is hard to witness all the time when you also have your own problems. 

Esmatullah, who is from Afghanistan, has been on Lesvos for 2 years and is also a skilled runner with Yoga and Sports. “Right now I’m more stressed than ever. Because the rest of my family is back in Kabul. They waited for 5 days in the airport, but did not get the chance to leave Afghanistan”. 

The family lived in Pakistan for many years, but was told to move back to Afghanistan some years ago, due to Afghanistan ‘being a safe country again’. “Now it is the second time my family is forced to flee their home country to find a safe and free place to live”. 

Esmatullah describes how his family used to make beautiful big carpets. “They are handmade and take a lot of time. A big and detailed one can take 6 people two months to make. Some of them have 15 different colors and a lot of patterns. We make them out of sheep wool. They are expensive to buy, because of all the time it takes to make. So many Afghans can’t afford them, so they are sold to foreign countries. I wish I could show you a picture, but at that time I did not have a phone to take pictures of the carpets we made – but I can assure you, they are very beautiful”. Esmatullah found a picture online to show the skill required and how a final result of the months of work can end up looking like. “ In the future, I dream about finding a good job to support my family. I mostly think about my brothers and sisters being safe, wherever that might be. And finally, I wish to feel happy and satisfied with my life”. 

Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts, dreams, and past with us Esmatullah. We wish you and your family all the best!