Living in his native Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank, Saleh Totah has fond memories of celebrating Christmas with his family. “When I was growing up, we would go around looking for a tree to chop down and then decorate it as a beautiful Christmas tree. On Christmas Eve we went to church and Christmas morning we would hope and pray it would be a white Christmas. I remember the first time I saw Santa Claus I was so scared I hid under the bed and cried.”
Much has changed since those early days for Totah, the owner of popular Cafe La Vie in Ramallah. For one, his family now resides in the United States. “All of my family lives in the States,” he says, “having emigrated because of the hardship of living in Palestine due to the Israeli occupation, which persecutes not just the Christians but Muslims as well.”
Similarly, the Israeli occupation impacts Totah’s ability to observe his Christian roots. “My mom’s church was in Jerusalem, which is 10 miles away from Ramallah, and I remember we used to go to Jerusalem every week to worship. But right now, I’m not allowed. If I wanted to go to Jerusalem, I would have to apply for a special permit and most likely I’ll get denied,” he explains. “To go to Bethlehem from Ramallah used to take 28 minutes. Now it takes one hour, or 90 minutes, passing through two or three checkpoints, if there is no traffic and the checkpoints are open, in order to visit the Church of the Nativity where Jesus was born.”
Despite the hardships, Totah is proud of his heritage, something that he reflects on particularly during Christmas time. “Christ was born in Palestine and grew up in Palestine,” he says. “This is something very unique and special to be a Palestinian Christian and to think about that.”