This is my story of eid

Zainab was born just three months before the genocide, and exactly a year ago she arrived at the hospital with devastating abdominal injuries after a nearby area was hit by a heavy missile.

I still remember her terrified eyes when I first saw her after midnight in the ICU. Her bowels were protruding from a large wound, and her mother had to push them back into her body with her bare hands. We searched through the night for a pediatric surgeon who could save her life.

Miraculously, Zainab survived severe liver and organ injuries, but the consequences remain. Today, at three years old, she weighs only 10 kilograms and still suffers from malnutrition and health complications.

A year ago, with support from people here, I was able to help her family financially and provide gifts for her recovery. Four weeks ago, her mother contacted me to say that Zainab kept asking about me and wanted to see me again. When I visited, I found the family living in a tiny tent made of cloth and scraps of wood.

Today, only weeks later, Zainab and her family finally have a small but solid home, with water, electricity, a kitchen, anda bathroom. It took enormous effort, especially from my dear friend Aboud, and 14,000 dollars to make it happen.

I'm deeply grateful I was there the night Zainab was injured, and that I could stand beside her again now and help give her family a safer life.

Thank you to everyone who believed in my humanity, and in Zainab's humanity too.

I've exhausted myself terribly today, but least it was for a good purpose.

It's been 15 hours of fasting, and 10 hours of intense effort distributing Eid outfits to 530 children and 100 women. My mission is fuifilled. Giving children gifts should be something joyful, but because of the desperation and deprivation around us, the day was incredibly stressful.

I left children behind who weren't lucky enough to receive an outfit.

I left children behind begging for clothes. I don't know what to say about that. We tried our best.