Imagine that your home consisted of small individual rooms situated atop the roof of an apartment building. Imagine that the walls of these rooms were made of aluminium and burlap. Imagine that the bathroom consisted of a toilet out in the open, surrounded by a blanket on only three sides for a bit of privacy (note: no ceiling; only the sky). Imagine that because this was not a proper apartment, there was no running water, no proper plumbing, and no electricity, so you had to haul water up five flights of stairs every day and borrow an electric line from the neighbor for two lightbulbs. If you were able to imagine even a bit of this, then you have pictured the humble home of an Armenian family living in one of the suburbs of Beirut.

When I met the mother with her two children (the husband was at work), they had been given a new home, complete with stone walls and glass windows. The toilet had a roof, and there was running water in the taps.

These are photos of their previous abode. When I met them, the joy was evident on the faces of the children, who have lived a hard life so far. It has been months since I last saw them, but I was reminded of them recently, and I wanted to share this with you.