Read her message to America

Iwould like to say to the people who are reading this is that when I left to Syria I was a naive, angry and arrogant young woman. I thought that I understood my religious beliefs and I thought I had good friends , I stopped listening to my family and those who care about me and that was a big mistake.

During my years in Syria I would see and experience a way of life and the terrible effects of war which changed me. Seeing bloodshed up close changed me. Motherhood changed me. Seeing friends , children and the men I married dying changed me. Seeing how different a society could be compared to the beloved America I was born and raised into changed me.

Being where I was and seeing the ppl around me scared me because I realized I didn’t want to be a part of this . My beliefs weren’t the same as theirs .

In my quiet moments, in between bombings, starvation, cold and fear I would look at my beautiful little boy and know that I didn’t belong here and neither did he.

I would think sometimes of my family, my friends and the life that I knew and I realized how I didn’t appreciate or maybe even really understand how important the freedoms that we have in America are. I do now.

To say that I regret my past words, any pain that I caused my family and any concerns I would cause my country would be hard for me to really express properly.