They leave everything in search of a refuge for their children. In fragile rafts, they defy the Mediterranean and touch land in Lesbos. They are Syrians, Iraqis, Afghans, Pakistanis, Sudanese, Bangladeshis and many more, on a long and uncertain journey. After they reach safety – often with the help of European volunteers – some stay on the coast, scouring the horizon in wait of a loved one on a different raft. The minutes are eternal on the shores of a cruel sea. Sometimes, there’s a happy reunion. Other times they receive the worst of news. “By day and by night, through good and bad weather, the scenes repeat,” Javier Bauluz writes in his story. “Fear, cold, anguish, joy, love, solidarity and – too often – death.” (Read this chapter)
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