One afternoon in Syria, the Abbasi children were walking home from school. The oldest, Fatimah, held her younger sister's hand, while her two brothers, Ali and Ahmed, ran up ahead with their group of friends. Suddenly, a rumble was heard over their heads. Fatimah gasped as she heard another explosion. "What is that, Fatimah?" Aliyah asked."A bomb." Fatimah whispered. Ali looked back at his sisters, "Run!" He yelled, sprinting back to their house. The others followed behind him. There was a terrible war in Syria, and nobody was safe.

Ali opened the door and rushed in, "Ummi, there's bombs!" He said to his mother, out of breath. She nodded, "All of you, come into the basement." She commanded. Aliyah and Fatimah came in. Another rumble was heard and their mother's face turned white. Aliyah peeked out of the window and saw that her school was destroyed by the bomb. "Aliyah, get away from the window." Ahmed dragged his younger sister into the basement. They would be safer underground, further away from the bombs.

Meanwhile, it was a Saturday morning in Canada, the Walter family were having a nice pancake breakfast. Their older daughter, Alice, was watching TV, and their son, Matthew, was helping his mother set the table. On the news, there were reports on the bombs in Syria. Their mother sighed, "It's horrible," she shook her head, "If only we could help them."

Bombing in Syria!!

Matthew looked up, "But we can, mum! We can let a family live here so they can be safe!" Mr. Walter, their father, came into the kitchen. "They can't come here." He said, "What if they can't find a job? What if they don't speak English like us?" Their mother shook her head, "Then we can help them, and teach them English. Those people need our help!" Mr. Walters sighed, "Alright, fine. They can stay with us, for a little while." Matthew and his mother grinned

The next day, in Syria, the Abbasi family board a plane, leaving their home for the last time. "The war is too bad here, Aliyah," Her father, Mr. Abbasi said, pulling a large suitcase behind him. "Though Canada is far away, it has plenty of opportunities for us. I could get a job, you could go to a safe school, and meet new friends and people." Ahmed nodded, "That's right, Aliyah," he said, "And anyways, Canada needs people like Abi to work, so that the country can be stable. No workers means an empty country. They need us, and we need them." 

Fatimah sat with Aliyah on the plane and looked out the window as they started to take off. Aliyah sighed as her beloved town got smaller and smaller. Goodbye park and swings. Goodbye comfy bed and happy house. Goodbye school. "Goodbye Syria..." She sighed.

Matthew was squirming in his seat at the airport, waiting to meet the family that was coming from Syria. "Matthew, stop moving!" Alice sighed, "They won't get here any faster if you keep squirming!". Letting a family live at your house was a lot of work. Matthew and Alice would have to share a room with the new kids, and the Abbasi family mostly spoke Arabic. Also, Mr. Walter would help Mr. Abbasi find a job, and the children would be in an entirely new school. Matthew peeped outside the window again, "The plane has finally landed!" He grinned, running to meet them. 

The Abbasi family came out into the deck and smiled, feeling less afraid. The two fathers shook hands and the mothers helped each other with the bags. Alice smiled, "My name is Alice! Nice to meet you!" She said, excited. Ahmed and Ali were already playing with Matthew and was showing them around the airport. Aliyah stuck next to her mother. At least she knew that Canada would be a new start and adventure.

As the two families drove to the house, the Walter's neighbors, the Blackwood's, eyed their car suspiciously. The Blackwood's shook their heads. "Imagine them actually bringing one of their kind here! They are going to ruin our peaceful neighborhoods!" They muttered to themselves. Aliyah felt small when they said that. She didn't know what they were saying, but it didn't sound good. Mrs. Walters quickly lead the children into the house while Mr. Walter decided to have a firm 'talk' with Mr. Blackwood. 

Matthew grins and runs up the stairs, showing Ahmed and Ali to his room. Ali points to a maple tree outside of the window, "What's that?". They had never seen maple trees before. "They're our national symbol. The Maple Trees. We can get syrup out of them. I'll show you one day," He smiles. Downstairs, Mrs. Abbasi immediately starts picking up on new English words.  "Where is the school?" She asks. Mrs. Walters points down the street. "Right there—Jean Augustine. It's a very nice school," she smiles at Aliyah, "I know you will all love it!".

A week later, the Abbasi children were set for their first day in a Canadian school! Aliyah was afraid that the kids would think that she was too different, and that she would have no friends. "You'll be fine," Fatimah reassured. "You're great at making friends! It'll be an adventure." Aliyah nodded and walked with her older siblings and Alice and Matthew.