Kufr Malek – Misada Muadi Homestay

Water, green, and a kind face are what one needs to make a picture complete.
“My father had a dream about me before I was born,” explains Misada.  “He knew my mother would give birth to a baby girl, and he swears that he saw me in his dream.  It made him so happy that he decided to call me Misada, the Happy One.”  Also known as Um Qusay (mother of Qusay) after her firstborn son, Missada lives up to her name in every way, bringing joy to all who cross paths with her in her home village of Kufr Malek – her family, her community, and visitors passing through.

Misada’s joy and enthusiasm for life express themselves in the broad range of interests she chooses to pursue.  The mother of four, she holds a master’s degree in social work and currently heads the public relations department at the Ministry of Youth in Ramallah. She is also fond of ancient artifacts, traditional embroidery, and objects with a history. This taste for the past expresses itself in her beautiful home; as she welcomes Palestine Heritage Trail walkers to come in, they cannot help but notice the charm that radiates from every corner of the carefully decorated rooms.

But Misada’s favorite place in the house is not even indoors; it is her small kitchen balcony.  To access the spot, she climbs through a window.  “It is a small window,” she admits, “but it looks out onto a whole other world.”  She loves to sit quietly on the balcony, looking out over the beautiful olive groves around her village and taking in the sunrise, which she believes is “the most beautiful moment in the day.”

Sharing the beauty of her home and village with visitors is one of Misada’s greatest sources of happiness.  “I like making my home a warm and beautiful space that is welcoming for everyone,” she says.  “I go by the Arabic mantra for a joyful life.  It says, ‘Water, green, and a kind face are what one needs to make a picture complete.’  Water – because it is the base of life; green, like my garden – because it calms the soul; and a kind and friendly face – because it makes for good companionship.  I hope that when people come to my house, they can experience these things.  But most of all, I am creating this for my family and sharing it with the world in the hope of setting an example of how life can be so much more wondrous with just a little bit of love.