What I Brought Home From Palestine

In August 2023, just months before the world's attention turned to Gaza, I spent three weeks living in Aida Refugee Camp in Bethlehem, Palestine.

It was one of the most profound experiences of my life. I witnessed the daily realities of life under occupation, restricted access to basic necessities, movement controlled, even food itself shaped by forces outside people's own hands. And yet what struck me most wasn't the hardship, it was the resilience. At the Lajee Centre in Aida, residents had created a rooftop garden, a quietly brilliant solution to the constraints of camp life, where families could grow their own fresh fruit and vegetables despite everything working against them. It stayed with me long after I came home.

When the situation in Gaza escalated dramatically in late 2023, I felt a deep pull to do something, however small. In November of that year, Shelly's launched a Palestinian inspired fundraiser treat box, featuring handmade coconut and orange macaroons, chocolate and tahini brownies, and rosewater shortbread. Each flavour was chosen as a small tribute to Palestinian food traditions a cuisine full of warmth, generosity, and history.

In just one week, over 100 boxes sold in 1 week, it was alot of boxes to get out as one person. Thanks to the incredible generosity of everyone who ordered, Shelly's was able to donate €2,455 in profits to Medical Aid for Palestine. I was overwhelmed by the response.

Food has always been how I connect with places and people. This felt like the most natural way I knew to show up.

If you'd like to read more about daily life in Palestine, I wrote about my time there you can find the article here: Fragmented Territories: The Spatial Infrastructures of Occupation.