"A Tribute To My Roots." Guest Blog by Danah Shuli.

If you’re from the Middle East, favors are a must-have for any festive occasion. The highlight of any special event is the perfectly wrapped and elegantly decorated piece of chocolate that is oftentimes displayed on a fancy tray of some sort. However, after eating the chocolate, you’re typically left with wrappers and décor that you may admire for a few minutes, but will eventually either collect dust in a drawer with other past party favors or be thrown away.

In both cases, it oftentimes feels wasteful and a disservice to the hosts, for the time, effort, and money that goes into buying, preparing, and joyfully distributing the favors to guests at parties.

It’s ironic that I’m saying this, as there was a time where I founded a business creating decorative chocolate party favors. And while it was successful while it lasted, it was always disheartening to think that the countless hours of prep work creating the designs for the favors would eventually go to waste.

This led me to rethink ideas for trying to find a unique party favor for my son’s aqeeqah.

Rather than going for the routine party favor everyone is used to, I opted to reach out to Sitti Soap to create a more unique gift with their handmade natural olive oil soap.

What drew me to Sitti Soap was the purpose behind their product. The fact that they empower women by creating employment opportunities for refugees in the Jerash Refugee Camp in Jordan, only makes the significance behind their product even more meaningful.

 

This is near and dear to my heart due to the fact that I am of Palestinian descent, with family that relocated to Jordan after being expelled in 1948.

By sharing Sitti Soap with our friends and family in a celebration of life, it not only allowed us to share a unique gift that can actually be of use but also an avenue to support life through the work of the refugee women making the soap by hand.

Not only that, but this type of soap originates from the city of Nablus, Palestine, the home of my Palestinian lineage.

Growing up, I cherished the memories of going to Nablus, and seeing the process of gathering olives and using them in different forms such as oils and soaps. Getting the opportunity to share Sitti Soap with my friends and family went beyond passing out normal party favors, but instead I was getting to share a tribute to my family heritage while celebrating the continuation of my heritage through my son.

Guest Writer: Danah Shuli

Danah is wife to Kareem and mama to Kinzah and Jude. She started her blog, Mother of Pearl, after having her daughter, as a creative outlet from the day to day of motherhood. She is on Instagram as motherofpear91, where she shares a glimpse into her life as a mama of two. Danah is also a blog writer for Haute Hijab. She writes on an array of topics such as lifestyle, motherhood, recipes, home/party décor tips and spiritual reflections. Outside of writing and Instagram, Danah enjoys taking nature walks, sipping on tea, surrounding herself with good company, travel and photography.