Finding My Family!

Hi Everyone!

Well, so much has happened since my last submission, but the MOST exciting has been making a connection with Sheik Walid El Khazen, who might very well be a distant cousin of mine!!!!! Here's the scoop!

Remember Hilda Mardelli, who lives here now but who lived with my Florida friend and neighbor, Judy Johnson as a college student in the 80's? Well, Hilda's husband, Adel is business partners with Nabil El Khazen (my grandmother's name was El Khazen, Americanized to AlKazin). I spoke with Nabil by phone from Hilda and Adel's garden a few weeks ago. Nabil's brother is Walid El Khazen, a prominent attorney and entrepreneur here in Lebanon. They are both descendants of the large and powerful El Khazen family who ruled, owned and controlled much of the central mountainous section of Lebanon called Keserwan (not always in a peaceful, benign way, I was told). While this large family controlled much of the land in this part of Lebanon, they also suffered great persecution under the Turkish Ottoman rule in the late 1800's, which may have driven my great grandfather to the US in 1900.

A meeting with Sheik Walid in his office was an eye-opener! He is extremely powerful, it seems, and his large staff is quite deferential to him, happily accommodating his every request. Walid has amassed a wealth of information on the El Khazen family, including a large family tree, genealogical charts and DNA testing, which traced the family as far back as Jericho in about 29 BC. (Okay, by now I am thinking, why did my ancestors ever leave here???....but you know families!) After seeing the charts, website, etc. I was thrilled that I might be finding a true connection to my ancestors. One vital piece of missing information is where my great grandfather actually lived in Lebanon - the village name is crucial to trace his roots. I am hoping one of my US cousins has the all important "box of stuff" with some documentation of Lebanese origins.

Walid invited us - Huda, James, Charlie and I - to a "small" family dinner at his home last Monday evening. He and his wife, Gloria, a truly beautiful, gracious lady, live in Rayfoun, a town about halfway up the mountain on our way to the chalet. He sent his driver to meet and escort us to his home and as we drove in, I realized my relatives should have NEVER LEFT Lebanon!!! The El Khazen home is in a compound of beautiful old Lebanese mansions that stretch over several acres. Their home, built by Walid's grandfather, is an exquisite stone and marble villa with a half acre garden whose focal point is a huge round pool built around natural rock and mammoth trees. It is designed to make you feel as if the pool is a natural lake, surrounded by lush green grass and beautiful landscaping. Set around the pool were several perfectly set tables and hundreds of candles which flickered throughout the garden and made the evening seem magical.

As soon as we arrived, Walid began introducing us to more than 45 El Khazen family members, from the 80-ish matriarch of the clan (who looked remarkably like my grandmother) to recent college grads home from Universities in the US and Europe. The entire experience was amazing and wonderful and emotional. I truly felt a connection to this family, and even if Walid doesn't find the link, he has already welcomed me into the family. He said he knew right away I was a part of the family because of my eyes!

After a fabulous dinner, copious wine and more delicious Lebanese desserts than should be legal at one time, we went into Walid's study and looked at more potential family links. Walid promised to continue searching for my great grandfather's family which should get us started on the exact branch of my family tree.

What a magical evening! Walid and I will talk again this week before I leave. I have tried to convince my friends here that I might actually own the land their house sits on!!!!! No one is buying it yet, but you never know!

Fate is amazing and the things that had to fall into place to make this connection between Walid and myself occur are mind boggling. Yep, I'm convinced this trip happened for a reason.

More to tell on daily power outages; a trip to Tripoli and Kobayat last weekend; moving from the mountain chalet/castle to the town flat/castle this weekend; the upcoming flight home; our trip to the Cedars, one of the last groves of ancient cedar trees left in Lebanon; visits to the myriad of festivals held for the feast of the Assumption, and a lot more on the Stone family. I realize I might be writing some of these after I get home. Hope you don't mind. I can't even begin to get it all in even doing it that way.

Hope this format is better!
Love to all,
Lari