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How poetry helped heal 11-year-old Firas; Syrian refugee in Jordan

How poetry
helped heal
11-year-old Firas;
Syrian refugee
in Jordan

Syrian refugee child in refugee camp in Jordan turns to poetry in times of difficulty

While most 11-year-olds are TikTok dance fanatics, hooked on Minecraft or obsessed with their favourite sports teams, Firas’ passion is a little different. His obsession? Reciting poetry. You won’t find him delivering simple four-line rhymes. Instead, he specialises in memorising some of the most difficult poems in classical Arabic literature, with all the finesse  of a well-trained actor.

Firas discovered his passion by accident when he was five. He and his family of seven had just settled in Azraq refugee camp in Jordan after fleeing violence in their home town of Hama, Syria. As the camp initially had neither electricity nor a school, World Vision partnered with communities in the camp to keep children learning through poetry contests. That was it, Firas was hooked! His parents supported his talent by teaching him to read, bringing him books and helping him work on his skills by watching YouTube videos.

Memorising and reciting poetry has boosted Firas’ confidence and may just make him a social media star. He enjoys having an audience so much, he’s launched his own Facebook page where he shares his poems and takes requests. “Everyone likes to listen to me because I am very good at reciting”, he says proudly. “They even ask me to upload more videos. So I am now also going to create a YouTube channel.”  

At his local World Vision education programme, Firas’ passion for poetry and the arts has rebuilt his confidence and helped with healing the horrors he witnessed in Hama. However, as much as he enjoys the arts, he has a much more profound goal for his future: “When I grow up, I want to become an architect. I want the world to know that Syria will be rebuilt by its children.”

Firas doesn’t hesitate when asked what he would do if he were president of the world for a day. Like too many children touched by the 10 years of violence in Syria, he would eliminate war completely. It has caused many innocent people to die. I also want everyone to have a home, so they don’t live on the streets,” he says.

Firas has many plans for his future but one thing he knows for sure is that wherever he goes, he will take his poetry with him so he can proudly share the art and culture of his people with the world.

World Vision has been responding to the needs of Syrian refugees since 2011.

See how our programmes are helping children like Firas, overcome the effects of the war, provide for their urgent needs and dream for their future.