How to Survive in a House Without Walls
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Current Issue
World
/ February 3, 2026
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
After their home was obliterated, Rasha Abou Jalal and her family remain determined to build a new one, even if it must be built out of nothing.
Rasha Abou Jalal
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This tent was what passed as a home for Rasha Abou Jalal and her family when the ceasefire began in October 2025.
This piece is part of A Day for Gaza, an initiative in which The Nation has turned over its website exclusively to voices from the Gaza Strip. You can find all of the work in the series here.
We—my husband and our five children—did not return home this past October, after a ceasefire paused the bloody Israeli war that stretched for two years. There was, to be more precise, no home to return to; it was obliterated in the first weeks of the war. No traces remain. We have only the memories now.
This article was translated by Rayan El Amine.
As of this writing, we have settled in a rented house in the south of Gaza City—though “house” is a generous description. It is the remnants of a home. There are no walls here; it is a shelter that itself seems ambivalent toward our habitation. Our children run wild through a living room that opens directly onto rubble, so the threat of their falling through the ruins is always imminent.
I still remember my husband’s gaze as we prepared to move into the house. Looking around, he said, “We can’t possibly live here, but we’ll build a home, even if it must be built out of nothing.”
A Day for Gaza
A Ceasefire in Name Only
Mohammed R. Mhawish
The Gaza Street That Refuses to Die
Ali Skaik
A Catalog of Gaza’s Loss
Deema Hattab
My Sister’s Death Still Echoes Inside Me
Asmaa Dwaima
What Gaza’s Photographers Have Seen
Huda Skaik
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
Rasha Abou Jalal
What Edward Said Teaches Us About Gaza
Alaa Alqaisi
What Happens to the Educators When the Schools Have Been Destroyed?
Ismail Nofal
At the Doorstep of Tomorrow
Engy Abdelal
“We Have Covered Events No Human Can Bear”
Ola Al Asi
He began gathering old scraps of wood and nylon. Enlisting the help of a few friends who were craftsmen, he fastened wooden planks to the wall and stretched nylon over the hollow gaps, creating a makeshift cover to protect our children.
The walls are flimsy, trembling violently in the breeze. But this is all we have. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has prohibited building materials from entering the Strip. There is no cement, no steel, no real tools to build with.
Still, my husband didn’t wait. He kneaded red clay with water and, with the help of those same friends, pasted the mixture over the holes that had formed …
This affects the entire country.
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Current Issue
World
/ February 3, 2026
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
After their home was obliterated, Rasha Abou Jalal and her family remain determined to build a new one, even if it must be built out of nothing.
Rasha Abou Jalal
Share
Copy Link
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Ad Policy
This tent was what passed as a home for Rasha Abou Jalal and her family when the ceasefire began in October 2025.
This piece is part of A Day for Gaza, an initiative in which The Nation has turned over its website exclusively to voices from the Gaza Strip. You can find all of the work in the series here.
We—my husband and our five children—did not return home this past October, after a ceasefire paused the bloody Israeli war that stretched for two years. There was, to be more precise, no home to return to; it was obliterated in the first weeks of the war. No traces remain. We have only the memories now.
This article was translated by Rayan El Amine.
As of this writing, we have settled in a rented house in the south of Gaza City—though “house” is a generous description. It is the remnants of a home. There are no walls here; it is a shelter that itself seems ambivalent toward our habitation. Our children run wild through a living room that opens directly onto rubble, so the threat of their falling through the ruins is always imminent.
I still remember my husband’s gaze as we prepared to move into the house. Looking around, he said, “We can’t possibly live here, but we’ll build a home, even if it must be built out of nothing.”
A Day for Gaza
A Ceasefire in Name Only
Mohammed R. Mhawish
The Gaza Street That Refuses to Die
Ali Skaik
A Catalog of Gaza’s Loss
Deema Hattab
My Sister’s Death Still Echoes Inside Me
Asmaa Dwaima
What Gaza’s Photographers Have Seen
Huda Skaik
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
Rasha Abou Jalal
What Edward Said Teaches Us About Gaza
Alaa Alqaisi
What Happens to the Educators When the Schools Have Been Destroyed?
Ismail Nofal
At the Doorstep of Tomorrow
Engy Abdelal
“We Have Covered Events No Human Can Bear”
Ola Al Asi
He began gathering old scraps of wood and nylon. Enlisting the help of a few friends who were craftsmen, he fastened wooden planks to the wall and stretched nylon over the hollow gaps, creating a makeshift cover to protect our children.
The walls are flimsy, trembling violently in the breeze. But this is all we have. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has prohibited building materials from entering the Strip. There is no cement, no steel, no real tools to build with.
Still, my husband didn’t wait. He kneaded red clay with water and, with the help of those same friends, pasted the mixture over the holes that had formed …
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
This affects the entire country.
Log In
Email *
Password *
Remember Me
Forgot Your Password?
Log In
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How to Survive in a House Without Walls
Magazine
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Subscribe
Log In
Search
Subscribe
Donate
Magazine
Latest
Archive
Podcasts
Newsletters
Sections
Politics
World
Economy
Culture
Books & the Arts
The Nation
About
Events
Contact Us
Advertise
Current Issue
World
/ February 3, 2026
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
After their home was obliterated, Rasha Abou Jalal and her family remain determined to build a new one, even if it must be built out of nothing.
Rasha Abou Jalal
Share
Copy Link
Facebook
X (Twitter)
Bluesky Pocket
Email
Ad Policy
This tent was what passed as a home for Rasha Abou Jalal and her family when the ceasefire began in October 2025.
This piece is part of A Day for Gaza, an initiative in which The Nation has turned over its website exclusively to voices from the Gaza Strip. You can find all of the work in the series here.
We—my husband and our five children—did not return home this past October, after a ceasefire paused the bloody Israeli war that stretched for two years. There was, to be more precise, no home to return to; it was obliterated in the first weeks of the war. No traces remain. We have only the memories now.
This article was translated by Rayan El Amine.
As of this writing, we have settled in a rented house in the south of Gaza City—though “house” is a generous description. It is the remnants of a home. There are no walls here; it is a shelter that itself seems ambivalent toward our habitation. Our children run wild through a living room that opens directly onto rubble, so the threat of their falling through the ruins is always imminent.
I still remember my husband’s gaze as we prepared to move into the house. Looking around, he said, “We can’t possibly live here, but we’ll build a home, even if it must be built out of nothing.”
A Day for Gaza
A Ceasefire in Name Only
Mohammed R. Mhawish
The Gaza Street That Refuses to Die
Ali Skaik
A Catalog of Gaza’s Loss
Deema Hattab
My Sister’s Death Still Echoes Inside Me
Asmaa Dwaima
What Gaza’s Photographers Have Seen
Huda Skaik
How to Survive in a House Without Walls
Rasha Abou Jalal
What Edward Said Teaches Us About Gaza
Alaa Alqaisi
What Happens to the Educators When the Schools Have Been Destroyed?
Ismail Nofal
At the Doorstep of Tomorrow
Engy Abdelal
“We Have Covered Events No Human Can Bear”
Ola Al Asi
He began gathering old scraps of wood and nylon. Enlisting the help of a few friends who were craftsmen, he fastened wooden planks to the wall and stretched nylon over the hollow gaps, creating a makeshift cover to protect our children.
The walls are flimsy, trembling violently in the breeze. But this is all we have. Despite the ceasefire, Israel has prohibited building materials from entering the Strip. There is no cement, no steel, no real tools to build with.
Still, my husband didn’t wait. He kneaded red clay with water and, with the help of those same friends, pasted the mixture over the holes that had formed …
