What is your biggest dream?

I have far too many too big dreams. I would like to become an important person and represent my country. Imagine if one day, I reached fame as a great photographer or author from Gaza.

I also dream of becoming a lawyer in order to defend my country, and women’s rights in Gaza. No-one tells women that we may make something of our lives, and that we too have rights and possibilities. There is a culture of simply living your life without paying much thought to this kind of thing.

I cannot study law in Gaza. I hope to go to university in Ramallah on the West Bank when I finish school.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

When our home was destroyed during the war (between Hamas and Israel during the summer of 2014, ed.) Before that I had everything I could ever dream of; if I wanted something, my father would buy it for me. This changed in a matter of minutes, when a missile shattered out apartment.

We were hiding in the cellar, when the missile hit the building. I hurried out on the street in order to see what had happened. Where was my home? I used to have everything, and all of a sudden I had nothing.

Whom do you admire the most?

My uncle has always been the number one person in my life. He died as a martyr in the war two years ago, killed during the air raids.

My uncle always encouraged me and made me believe that I would amount to something. Although I live in a country where women are overlooked and have few possibilities, my uncle would always tell me to go on writing and taking pictures. You will make something of your life in the future, he said. Now that he is gone, I no longer know what to do. No-one else supports me like he did.

What is on your mind these days?

I love writing. Mostly, I write about myself, or I write letters to my deceased uncle. When you love someone dearly, and suddenly they are gone, then the only thing left to do is write them letters.

Sometimes I write about my country. Once, I wrote for our school magazine, but most of the time I avoid showing others what I write.

I often write poems, and for many years I kept a diary. All those diaries vanished on the day that our home was bombed.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I suppose we all think in the same girly way and care about other people? It is easier, however, to see the ways in which we differ: for instance in Denmark, girls have freedom. They are free to speak their mind. Here, we know the word freedom as well, but we hardly know what it means.

What is your dearest belonging?

I guess it is my mobile phone. When I feel that life is hard and unfair, I take pictures of myself with my phone. It is a way of expressing the pain inside.

The pictures are only meant for myself. I wouldn’t dream of posting them on Facebook or elsewhere on the Internet.

What is your fondest memory?

A few years ago, I wrote my first poem and had it published in the school magazine. It motivated me immensely. The poem was published on the international women’s day, and it was about how women make up half of our society yet we are invisible.

I had to talk about the poem to the whole school. Afterwards, I could tell that we got a whole new respect from the boys: They started to respect the girls.

What is your biggest dream?

My biggest dream in life is to become a succesful actress, and to leave this island. London would be good, but it is a rather costly place.

When I stand on stage, it is easy for me to be a different person from the one I am. I kind of turn into a different person. I become more confident and believe more in myself, and I love that. I like myself better, when I am acting.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

When I was younger, I had to get out of my comfort zone and stand up for myself to a person that treated me very badly. She was very possessive of me, and she would ignore me for days and then be like ’oh, best friend’. It was very heart breaking. I think that made me a bit more secluded to myself. But now she is out of my life, so I am happy.

Whom do you admire the most?

JThat would be my brother: He is self-assured, everybody loves him, and I envy him a little for that reason.I love him of course, I really do love him. It’s just strange that he is so self-assured, while I am not.

What is on your mind these days?

I have anxiety issues, and I find them hard to handle. I get many anxiety attacks, and I never know when. It’s best that I have the right person around me when it happens, so that I may calm down. That person cannot always be around, so more often than not I handle the attacks myself. It is difficult for me, however.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I think strength. Because people make us believe that we are not as strong as we really are, and we’re not given the same chances, still, because they’re like: ’Oh, now we’re equal’, but I don’t think that’s true.I think if we were given the same chances as men, we would do a lot more.

What is your dearest belonging?

A necklace that my best friend gave me. I adore it.

What is your fondest memory?

Every moment that I spend with my friends. All we have to do is have a laugh together. That makes it a happy memory for me. My friends make me very happy.

What is your biggest dream?

I would really love to go on a grand tour with my best friend. Simply to travel and see new countries and meet new people. It’s such a thrill to meet other people than the ones you are likely to meet in Denmark.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

My parents divorced when I was 16 months old. I don’t really remember it … My mother was together with a man named Martin for something like nine years, but then they split up. My mother got herself a new boyfriend, and we live with him now. This here thing of us moving in with him when they had known each other for less than six months ... this there thing that if your mother says you have to move, then you have to. And there is nothing I can do about it. I find it very unpleasant that I do not get to have an opinion or a say in it at all. If my mother makes this decision, then I simply have to tag along.

Also, there was one time when my father and his wife had just had a child. See, I was used to being an only child, so for me it was brand new thing to suddenly have a half-sibling. I figure that now my father didn’t love me anymore; surely the new child meant more to them than I did. I didn’t go see my father for six months. I didn’t see him at all, because I wanted nothing to do with him. But when we saw each other later, it turned out he still loved me of course.

I actually saw a specialist in wellbeing back then, because you cannot simply not see your father for six months. That was actually one of my greatest ordeals ever.

Whom do you admire the most?

I admire my grandfather a lot. He is my mother’s father, and he really means a lot to me, seeing as my other grandfather had already died when I was born. So I have always only had this one. And when he was 18 or 19 years old, he went on a road trip with his best friend. They didn’t have anywhere special they wanted to go, they simply hitchhiked. I think it’s totally inspiring how you simply drop everything and say: ’Now I simply want to experience things.’

What is on your mind these days?

In school, sometimes I wonder if I do well enough. Or whether I do the right things. Sometimes that worries me a bit. You see, you want to be the best at something, and then at times it gets a bit competitive. And I don’t actually want it to be like that. Because you want to do the best you can all the time, but you simply can’t do that all the time.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

Girls my age, I think we feel insecure and unsafe all the time. We are worried that we might not do well enough, or afraid we might get assaulted or raped. Or worried that our parents all of a sudden don’t think we do well enough.

What is your dearest belonging?

I have a lump of amber that I got from my grandfather. I feel that somehow it says a very beautiful ting: This here thing is more that two million years old, and I got it from my grandfather who means the world to me. I can hold something in my han that has been through so many things.

What is your fondest memory?

It’s hard to choose just one thing, seeing as how I am thirteen years old, and I have tried many things. But I find the little things to be the best. Last year in summer we picnicked on the beach in the summer. The sky was cloudless, and we were probably the only people on this beach. The water was completely blue, and everything was good. At one point I looked around, and it struck me how lucky I am: that I may simply sit here surrounded with my people, the ones I care about the most. Those little things that you do together with your people: they are what mean the most to me.

What is your biggest dream?

My biggest dream is to train as a nurse and get to help people around here. People need medicine and health clinics, and I would like to help.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

My biggest ordeal was losing my father. He died in 2002, and my mother struggles to make the money for my textbooks and my school uniform.

Whom do you admire the most?

A lady around here who visits my village from time to time. She works as a nurse at the district hospital. I get very motivated by watching her, because she has made something of her life and has taken her studies seriously.

What is on your mind these days?

My textbooks. I read a lot in them at home so that I may do good at school and be able to answer the teacher’s questions.

What is your fondest memory?

That was when my family harvested 20 sacks of maize last year. Usually we only harvest five sacks. We had managed to plant in better times than other years, and the harvest made it possible for my mother to pay for new clothes to me.

What is your biggest dream?

I have many dreams. One of my greatest dreams is a bit materialistic, I guess, namely to live in New York. It’s a fantastic city. Thanks to my parents I was lucky enough to go there a few years ago, and I feel for it completely. New York is the city of famous people and so many possibilities, and it is where so many different, great personalities have become succesful. If I get the chance at all, I want to build my life and my career in New York.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

I have been lucky enough to be spared very dramatic or sad incidents in my life so far, but several experiences have made their mark. When I was eight, my grandmother died, and this was the first time ever I saw my father cry. I remember how strange it felt. For me, it underlined how conclusive death is, and just how close to us. It also taught me that we shouldn’t hide our feelings.

Whom do you admire the most?

So, I don’t think it’s okay and correct to have one particular person to admire.I think it’s better to catch different things from different people, all the good sides.

And maybe the person whose traits I really like is my father, not because I love him, because he is my father, the top is that still he is strict and kind at the same time, and it’s helped him a lot in all his life, in his career and building everything that we have today. And that is a trait that I want to see in myself in the future.

What is on your mind these days?

High school ends this summer, and I have to pass three exams that will be decisive for my final mark. If I get sufficiently good marks, I may study for free. If the marks aren’t good enough, you have to pay to go to university. I hope to get good marks and study for free, but otherwise my parents have promised to pay. They find it a bit silly, me worrying so much about this, and they comfort me by saying that they will pay for my studies no matter what, but I can’t help thinking about it even so. Our teachers always tell us how important it is, and I myself would also like to get good results.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

Unfortunately, a lot of teenage girls get overlooked or misunderstood by their parents or friends, or they get bullied, and they don’t get to choose their own education. I myself speculate a lot about my exams, my future, and what I want to become, and I believe that this is the kind of stuff that goes around in teenage girls’ heads.

Fortunately, we also have other things in common. We like entertainment, and we have new experiences on our mind. To be quite honest, we would like to try grown-up things such as tattoos, piercings, alcohol, and smoking.

What is your dearest belonging?

I have a very special box that I call my memory box. It is definitely that box ¬–and my hamster– that I would grab and take with me, if the house was on fire. I keep all my postcards and letters, drawings and other bits and bobs in my memory box. It contains my whole life. I do know that we store our memories in our brain and inside us, but when I open this box it is as if it all stands more clearly.

It is not a particularly fancy box. It is an orange shoebox that came with a pair of winter shoes I got a few years ago. The shoes were quite expensive, but I really wanted them, and when I got them I was so happy that I kept the box as well, because everything was so special about those shoes. With time, I began to collect my things in that box, and by now it is stuffed so full that there is barely room for more. But I can’t imagine using a different one instead.

What is your fondest memory?

When I was six months old, I got a nanny called Lena and had her untill I was 12 years of age. Lena became a part of our family and was my extra mother, and she still is. I often spend time with her.

One day when I was with her, she was informed that her daughter had given birth, and I came along with her to the hospital. It dawned on me that it was not only I who viewed my nanny as part of my family; she also saw me as part of her family. That was very touching and made me very happy.

What is your biggest dream?

My dream is to go to Orlando [Disneyland, Florida in the US, ed.] and meet the characters from the famous cartoons, because they are fantastic and very magical.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

Going down a steep mountain on a bicycle. That was my biggest ordeal ever. I was a little scared, and it was dificult to keep your balance. I barely made it.

Whom do you admire the most?

I admire my parents a lot, especially my father because he always talks about his past and about the time when he was my age in a way that touches me and inspires me. He is a good role model, and I have quite a lot in common with him. We both like cars, for instance. Many of the things I do, I do because of him. Among other things, he has taught me that it is important to work hard and value life. When I do something wrong, he often lectuers me, and I think about it afterwards and use his experiences to become a better person.

What is on your mind these days?

Right now things are going quite well with school and friends and so on, so I am very content with how things are right now.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I think some of what I have in common with other girls in the rest of the world are our hopes for life and the future. For instance to be happy, have a good life and a big room with a big closet stuffed with cool and awsome clothes and pretty shoes. I think, generally, girls across the globe are into shoes and clothes and like meeting up with their friends and spending time with them.

What is your dearest belonging?

I love my mobile phone that allows me to be in contact with my family and my friends, my camera for taking pictures, and books. I especially like the Divergent-trilogy by Veronica Roth, it’s very engrossing, and The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

Apart from that I think a fast Internet connection is important for many girls, so we can keep up on the social media. I know it is to me.

What is your fondest memory?

I have always dreamt of having a female pet. Now I have my dog, Penelope. The day I got her if my fondest memory. We found her on the street one cold evening, and we spoke about what to do. She was only a puppy. My parents’ didn’t think it was a good idea to take her with us. But I pursuaded them and promised to take care of her. And because I am being responsible, and I am good at taking care of Penelope, I was allowed to keep her.

What is your biggest dream?

I want to become a paediatrician. Perhaps it is because I love children that I want to become a doctor and take care of them. It’s a tough job that requires hard work, but I am also a person who works hard. I went to see a paediatrician a few months ago, and she was really nice. I said to her: ‘I want to become a doctor like you.’ She said: ‘It’s a good thing to be a paediatrician. Best of luck.’

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

When my mother went back to Syria after taking me to Istanbul. I was very sad. We talk on the phone every day, and that helps. She asks me about all sorts: about school, and about my sister. If it were up to me, I would gather us all together anew. I don’t care where we live. I just want us to be together.

Whom do you admire the most?

A paediatrician I met in Syria. I want to be like her, I love her dearly. She treated me like her daugther. She used to teach me biology at school, but stopped in order to work as a doctor. I met her again about a year ago because I has a sore throat, and she was in the clinic.

What is on your mind these days?

My Arabic teacher said for me to write a story. I wrote it, but I worry that perhaps it is not very good and I will not get a good mark. I think about that.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I share one very important things with girls across the globe, and that is our hopes for the future. Like becoming a succesful and famous lawyer or journalist that people have heard about all over the work. I think we have that in common. I play with Turkish girls my own age here. Their language is very difficult to learn, so we play without talking. We understand each other anyway, because we feel like playing.

What is your dearest belonging?

My doctor’s kit. It’s like the instruments that doctors use, only it’s a toy: one of these things to listen with, books, a thing to pull bullets out of your body, a thermometer and something to fix knees. My sisters and the others let me be the doctor, and it always makes me happy to play with it.

What is your fondest memory?

Back when my whole family lived together in Damascus [the capital of Syria, ed.]. Now I am in Turkey with my sister, my brother and his wife. Two of my brothers are in Germany. My parents are in Syria. That is not good at all.

What is your biggest dream?

That there was no smog and no pollution; only a clear, blue sky. I would also like to travel across the world and make friends with people with different beliefs from different cultures. I dream of becoming an architect so that I may draw green, eco-friendly and earthquake-secures houses for people to live in.

Finally, I hope that the quality of the Chinese nation and population may be improved: A lot of people don’t get a proper education, and Chinese tourists throw garbage and behave poorly when they go travelling. Also, women have lower status than men, especially in the countryside.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

Learning to swim. One of my classmates kept me under water, and I got really scared. It still taunts me. All the time, actually.

Whom do you admire the most?

The English adventurer Bear Grylls from the TV program “Man vs. Wild”. He is so strong-willed that he survives all kinds of rigours and difficult situations. I respect people with the wisdom that makes them capable of surviving all sorts of ordeals.

What is on your mind these days?

I am into making engravings at the moment. I engrave logos, pictures, and simple signs in rubber. Right now I am busy with an engraving for one of my friends who likes my work. I also sell them on Taobao.com [a Chinese business portal on the Internet, ed.].

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

We love all small animals, we are good-hearted people, and we have great compassion for others.

What is your dearest belonging?

A home-made quilt from my granny.

What is your fondest memory?

When I visited Disneyland in Hongkong together with one of my friends whom I had not seen for eight years. I have always dreamed of visiting Disneyland, so it was amazing to be there and share this experience with my friend after all those years.

The reason why I love Disneyland is not just because the place is so beautiful and there are so many thrilling and fun things you can try. The most important part is that everyone is so kind and friendly, and that their friendliness comes from the heart.

What is your biggest dream?

On a global level, I dream of greater equality between boys and girls, women and men, the poor and the rich. People are different and should be allowed to live different, but the respect needs to be the same: people should be equal. No-one should be looked down upon, or very much up to.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

Near my family´s summerhouse there is a great mountain wall, and we have a tradition of trying to climb it. I started trying when I was 11, but it was very difficult. I tried and tried all summer, and at last I succeeded. It was awesome that I managed to climb it after all those tries. The message is: never give up.

Whom do you admire the most?

Emma Watson, because she is a good actress, but also because she stands by her values and is concerned with equality issues. She once spoke at the United Nations about how the world would be a better place if we achieved more equality.

What is on your mind these days?

I give equality between boys and girls a lot of thought, because I find it really stupid that you get less respect simply because of your gender.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

Everybody wants to be seen and needs attention. Some more than others, but I believe that everybody is happy to be seen. Sometimes you are unsure if you are cool enough, and when you get positive attention you feel more confident and relies more on yourself.

What is your dearest belonging?

It’s a ring that used to belong to my great-great-great-grandmother and has been in the family for many years. I got it not so long ago. The ring is very old, so I did not know her myself, but it means something that I feel I get in contact..

What is your fondest memory?

It was a day in New York when we did a variety of things: we went rowing in Central Park, we went to a musical, and at the end we ate in a fancy restaurant in the centre.

What is your biggest dream?

I would like to be a doctor and cure people in my village when they fall ill. I would like to be the one to give them medicine. I have seen people get very ill with headaches and high fever, and there is no-one to help them. The old people do not get to see a doctor either. I like the people in my village, so I would like to help them.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

The earthquake that hit my village last year. I was at my upstairs neighbour’s because they have a television. I was watching an episode of “Kumkum Bhagya” [Nepalese soap series, ed.]. All of a sudden, I heard a very loud sound: thump, thump, thump it went. It sounded as if it came from the ground itself. I had never heard anything like it. I did not cry like some of the others, but I got very scared and ran downstairs and out of the house. Within a moment, everybody from the village had gathered on the road. People from the village told me that it was an earthquake that had made the loud sound. We were all very scared. But even though the school and some houses had been destroyed, no-one was hurt. After the earthquake, there were many afterquakes, so many of us stayed outside: we cooked outside, ate outside and sat together outside.

Whom do you admire the most?

My mother. She works very hard in the house and on our fields, and caters for my brother and me. I want to be like her.

What is on your mind these days?

My father works in Saudi Arabia. We have no contact with him, so we don’t know how he is doing. I think a lot about whether he is okay. He was supposed to send money home to us for us to live off. But no money comes our way, and we do not know why. It is hard for us to make enough money for food and everything here.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

All the girls in my village want to go to school. We like it and would like to go to school for a long time. I think girls all over the world feel the same way.

What is your dearest belonging?

I have a new subject in school calles Nepalese grammar, and I like it a lot. My dearest belonging is my textbook on Nepalese grammar.

What is your fondest memory?

I don’t have any specific memory, but I like being with people from my village. They help you during hard times. And the best thing I know is to be with my friends at school. We have a very good time together.

What is your biggest dream?

My biggest dream is to become a very famous fashion designer or a lawyer. I like clothes and thinking up new designs. Ever since my parents divorced, I have wanted to become a lawyer. I feel that I am good at defending myself verbally.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

When my father passed away a year ago. I stayed at home a lot and withdrew in myself. I didn’t want to see anyone or speak to anyone; I simply lay in my room and slept or watched television and my phone. If I had to go out, I did it in the evening because I didn’t want to meet anyone I knew.

Whom do you admire the most?

My role model is my mother. She is independent and has raised two daughters on her own just like that.

What is on your mind these days?

At the moment I have a big drawing project at school where I am supposed to draw a bird with lots of very thin lines and a variety of effects and colours that I myself must mix. It is an extremely difficult project, but I like this kind of challenge. It takes a lot of my time, but it also interests me a lot.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I watch a lot of videos on the Internet about make-up and fashion. I think I have that in common with many girls. Other than that, I do not think we have a lot in common other than love trouble. Not that I have love trouble myself.

What is your dearest belonging?

My dog Oscar. I believe he is my best friend and my closest friend. He doesn’t blow the gaff about the things I tell him, and he has never gone behind my back or tried to deceive me.

What is your fondest memory?

When I started at my present school where I found some good friends that I shall keep for many years to come. The most important thing in a friendship is to be loyal and not bad-mouth each other. A lot of people here in Turkey gossip. When someone says something about someone else, people believe it just like that.

What is your biggest dream?

I want to lead an ordinary life. I don’t dream of anything extraordinary. I want a family and I want children, and I want a good job doing something that I love doing. I do not know as of yet what it should be.

What has been your biggest ordeal ever?

I guess I don’t take a lot of chances, and I don’t put myself in difficult situations. I stay in my comfort zone. I like my routines. I don’t try things that I’m not good at or do not like, and I guess there is a reason for that. I guess I should try new things more often.

My friend and I had an argument where I said something really mean to her, and she was like ‘that’s not acceptable’, and I got annoyed at her and stuff. But afterwards, I realised that she was right. And I think that really … what you think is right in the moment, isn’t always the best thing to say or do.

Whom do you admire the most?

My mother actually. In a way she has achieved everything! She is a great mum, and she spends lots of time on her family, but she also loves her job, and she is very passionate about the stuff she does. She does lots of things that she likes doing, so that is very inspiring.

What is on your mind these days?

Basketball and hanging out with my friends. It makes me feel self-confident, like I may do anything. What you invest in the game decides what you get out of it. That shows me that if you make a great effort and really goes all in, then you may obtain what you want.

And when you are with your friends, they are people who get you, and you don’t have to hide anything from them. It’s okay to just be yourself, and they understand your little ways. And they will always be there for you, even if something bad happens.

What do you reckon you have in common with girls in the rest of the world?

I think girls all over the world are unique and passionate and stick together. I believe, we may all learn from each other’s experiences and see how our lives are both alike and different.

What is your dearest belonging?

I got this necklace at a family wedding. I was a flower girl and got it afterwards. I wear the necklace on special occasions. It makes me feel a kinship with them and all the memories and emotions from that experience.

What is your fondest memory?

When I was smaller, I travelled with my family to Africa and Europe. It was truly great, because I got a chance to see the most amazing things that I had never dreamt of. And it was lovely to share such a great experience with my family.

It made me appreciate the life I have, but it also made me feel that I want to get out into the world and see new things and explore.

THE ARTICLE WAS PUBLISHED ON MAY 12, 2016

DRAWINGS: ANNA MAGNUSSEN

TEXT: ULLA POULSEN, NIKOLAJ KRAK, ANNA KLITGAARD, KARITTE LIND BEJER, JONAS FRUENSGAARD, NANNA MUUS STEFFENSEN, VERA BUNDGAARD, ZHANG YANYAN, ULRIK STRØJER KAPPEL, ANNE METTE FUTTRUP, LINDA NORDAHL JAKOBSEN OG STINE KROMANN DRAGSTED

TRANSLATOR FROM THE DANISH: SARA HØYRUP

EXTRA FOTOS: YILMAZ POLAT OG NICOLAS CELAYA/SCANPIX

PHOTO PROCESSING: LEIF TUXEN

FOREIGN EDITOR: KERRIN LINDE

DIGITAL EDITOR: STINNE ANDREASEN

DIGITAL PRODUCER: KIM SCHOU