TIME

SPEAKER

AUDIO

00:02:08:24

Friends of Aya

Aya

00:02:11:12

Friends of Aya

Aya we miss you

00:02:13:11

a friend of Aya

Can i sit next to you in class?

00:02:20:04

Aya

Narmonti …                                                                        I have cut my hair!

00:03:57:11

Aya

I feel different from everyone else around me.                They can go outside, in the sun,                                                        but I cannot.                                                                                                                                    It saddens me that I can’t go out during day time, like everyone else.                                                             I always ask mum, why can’t I go out with them?                                                                                          She tells me that, "Your situation doesn't allow you|to go outside in the sun! "                                                     I always ask her the same thing, until she convinced me.                                                                            Right now it doesn't matter to me to see others outside in daytime.

00:04:36:22

Aya

Show me you little genius

00:04:38:21

The Colleague of Aya

You’ll see, Mrs. Genius!

00:04:41:15

Aya

I bet you, you won't!

00:04:43:12

The Colleague of Aya

You'll see!

00:04:46:12

Aya

Well done.

00:04:47:16

The professor

Save your work please!

00:04:49:20

Aya

Save the work, click here!                                               Exit!

00:04:55:24

The Colleague of Aya

I know how to do it!

00:04:57:01

Aya

Click again and close the file.

00:04:59:19

The Colleague of Aya

I thought you knew!

00:05:02:08

The professor

push in your chair.

00:05:38:07

Aya

When i go outside in a sunny day, and it's hot,               my body starts to get warm, i get anxious.                             I have to stay in a cold place, to cool off                        so I don’t get sick and my body doesn't weak.

00:06:37

Aya

I must always to stay away from the sun.               I must always apply sunscreen every two hours.

00:07:17:09

Lamia

Since the age of five, I've realized that I am a child of the moon.                                                                         What i remember the most from my childhood it's my elementary school.                                                            In break times when everyone goes outside                 I had to stay all alone in the classroom.                           I used to look from the back of the class, at their shadows through the window.                                            This is what I mainly remember from my primary school experience                                                                          I also remember, in the third grade, I was not allowed to attend french courses. The teacher said, at first, that there is no such a thing as my illness, that someone can't bear the sun, there is no one who is allergic to the sun.                                                Afterwards she accepted the idea but refused to teach with the curtain closed in the classroom.                  At the time, they didn’t have window's film proctections, so we had to close all windows, which made it very dark.                                                         That's why i was not attending the course.                        As an alternative, we put a black curtain at the back of the class, so I could sit in the class but I wasn’t able to see the board.                                                Despite everything, I was the best one in class that year!                                                                            

00:08:41:05

Aya

The sun is natural, created by God,
and it can't be controlled. It irritates my health
so I try my best to avoid it, so I wouldn’t get more freckles on my face - ot to make my case any worse. I don’t hate the sun. I just can’t face it. I have to avoid it because of my illness. I don't hate it.

00:10:06:21

Doctor

Show me.

00:10:29:24

Doctor

Your skin is extremely dry. Aya, the freckles that
 I checked last time have increased. This is due to lack of protection.  The more you’re exposed to UltraViolet light, the more the freckles increase, and there is no turning back. We don’t have a treatment to eliminate them. Every freckles that appears will remain forever. You have to take this treatment seriously so that your condition won't get worse. Keep a close eye on her Mr Faycel and make sure she doesn’t forget to apply the treatment.

00:11:18:18

Aya's dad
 (Mr. Faycel)

Sure, I will!

00:11:28:14

Lamia

I feel trapped like a bird in a cage, obliged to
 follow a strict schedule. That controls my time. Yes, i am trapped, I spend the whole day at home, as if i am in a cage, a feeling of imprisonment. I am only able to get out once the sun is down and I have to get back in before sunrise. It's a feeling of... limitation by time, limited by the sun. I see my sister go outside regularly, all comfortable. My sister who is of course doesn't carry this disease, she is free to go outside anytime. And I often ask myself, "Why me?".

00:13:43:16

Lamia's mother

(song) My daughter grew up and she became
beautiful. God bless her and protect her. My daughter grew up. God bless her and protect her.

00:14:30:10

Lamia

Being a child of the moon, I went through times
 especially in my teenager years. It was then that I really realized that I was different. Looking at myself, I wondered "Who am I?". That moment was my birth, Lamia's birth. Not the birth of a child of the moon, but the birth of Lamia the woman. As a young girl, as a femlae.

00:15:26:04

Lamia

Are you done?

00:15:28:18

Lamia's mother

Almost there.

00:15:29:21

Lamia

Putting the finishing touches?

00:15:31:16

Lamia's mother

Yeah, it's almost done.

00:17:13:01

Siham

When I failed high school, I hated myself, hated
 stuties, hated my illness. I went to the beach for the whole day, from 7am to 3pm. I didn’t have any complications. My skin has gone red, true, but I was fine. The tumors that would cause us cancer, God forbid,  didn't get me! Do you understand why? They have always warned me from going outside. As if someone tells you "If you try that thing you’d get harmed". While I see you doing it without any harm, why am I the one to get hurt?  No, you’re fine. I should be fine too. Why you can, and i can't? I did what i had a mind to do. Hearing that Siham can’t study, because she’s sick drives me crazy.

00:18:31:14

Siham

Thank God that I can still walk, I can still hold
 things in my hands, I can still talk and see, and
 my brain is still functional. Just like anyone else. I can go out and take any kind of transport, work at the university, get back home. I have reached my goals, thanks to God. I wanted to finish my studies|despite my sickness. I have graduated. And i feel that I have accomplished the impossible. I wanted to study for my self confidence, to get a sense of self accomplishment and prove my existence. It's not because of you that i've succeeded, it's because of me, my ambitions! You understand?

00:20:04,520

Man at market

 Bring me the small one, leave the big one aside.

00:20:23,440

Lamia

Good morning.

00:20:51,678

Lamia's sister

Lamouch, have a great day.

00:20:53,156

Lamia

Have a good day.

00:21:30,160

Lamia

Good morning.

00:21:31,311

Lamia's friend

Good morning, Lili.

00:21:32,400

Lamia

How are you? Are you working?

00:21:34,856

Lamia's friend

Yes.

00:21:35,982

Lamia

Yeah, that's good.

00:21:37,030

Lamia's friend

What about you?

00:21:38,135

Lamia

I have a PCR test to take. What about you? You
finished?

00:21:41,680

Lamia's friend

I am going to work on it.

00:21:43,200

Lamia

Okay then, hurry up so I won't be late.

00:21:46,120

Lamia's friend

When are you leaving?

00:21:47,520

Lamia

I don't know, late in the afternoon. I am going to
 spend the whole day here.

00:22:20,360

Lamia

I try to show that I am a stron woman, that
nothing bothers me, but in reality, it does. It's overwhelming. If I was getting judgements from just a few people, I can deal with that. But it is an infinite number of judgments, and an infinite
number of insults. You can overlook a few insults, but at a certain point, all you'd wish is to stay
away from all perceptions. I certainly feel it.

00:23:13,613

Siham

I go in, sit on a chair, headphones on, my phone
 in my hand. In my own world. I don't care, either you look at me or not. What you're talking about, it's none of my business. When I go to the post office to withdraw money, and I am at the front line, they make the person after me go before me. Everyone is responsible for their own acts. My college friends bring me coffee here instead of me drinking it in a coffee shop, so that they won't leave me all alone here. They know I am asthmatic. I can't stand the smoke in a coffee shop. I no longer care what people think of me.

00:24:44,840

Lamia

When I am out in the morning, I have to be
cold-hearted, because I know I'll get bullied and hear plenty of insults along the way. I see my disease through people's eyes. I am constantly reminded that I am "a child of the moon". I became insensitive to what people say, or to how people react. Our society doesn't accept those who are different. Different people are automatically rejected. That's what hurts me the most. With time you just have to accept it and make peace with it.

00:25:36,717

Aya

I don't pay attention to bullies. I don't
acknowledge them or respond to them. If I pay attention to them, I will be hurt and eventually destabilized. It's best for me to concentrate on myself instead.

00:26:27,000

Aya

I am just crying, that's all.

00:29:59,517

Lamia

It doesn't work.

00:30:33,240

Aya

When you were my age, had you ever asked your parents about your future?

00:30:40,626

Lamia

What do you mean?

00:30:42,960

Aya

Were you scared of who you'd grow up to be?
Like me, I always ask myself, why do I have this
disease? Why did God choose me to carry it?

00:30:54,600

Lamia

Yes, I used to constantly ask my father those
 questions. What's wrong with your eye? I used to ask my parents many questions, like, why did I
carry this disease? Why doesn't my sister have it? But you know, when you get older you stop asking, why, because asking why will not change a thing. Let's say, you discovered why, then what?

00:31:30,698

Aya

You cried and thought about it?

00:31:32,120

Lamia

Yes cried and thought about it.

00:31:33,920

Aya

You wondered for hours, why you are this way?
And gained nothing out of it.

00:31:40,666

Lamia

Exactly, you gain nothing from overthinking it.
It won't change a thing. In down moments, you
question yourself, your existence.

00:31:51,648

Aya

Yes, it happens with me. I ask my mother daily,
why am I this way? I am ugly.

00:31:56,220

Lamia

You're beautiful!

00:31:59,712

Aya

I asked my mother, why do I have this illness? I
 ask my mother why I'm this way. I am not pretty. And, she says "No, you are beautiful
the way you are." I say, I have these freckles, I hate it, I just don't like it. Why did God do this to me? I started praying, and I kept on asking to be healed. And I did pray regularly, I started praying regularly. But then I stopped, because I couldn't keep it up with my studies. But, I kept on praying
before going to bed to get well and succeed in my life, and to look like the rest of the world. I want to grow up and finish my studies, just like you. I want to look beautiful and have a clear face. Before, I thought that praying would take away my illness. That's what I believed!

00:34:11,920

Lamia

I didn't want a short-term solution. If I go out
today, I will suffer the next day. So, I thought of ending my life once and for all. During that 8 month period, I didn't feel like I belonged anywhere. If I considered going out, I knew what was waiting for me out there. Two years of suffering and then death. So, I thought to just skip ahead to the death part. Why would I waste any more time?

00:35:43,680

Lamia

I had my moments of weakness, but I have
always had this little voice inside of me, telling me, "Lamia, don't give up, keep on going forward, something better is waiting for you." I have a hypersensitivity to Ultraviolet light, but I have the strength to defeat it.

00:38:00,280

Aya

Mum!

00:39:01,920

Lamia

With important geographical features, Tunisia is
considered one of the countries in which the
number of savage plants...

00:39:16,840

Lamia's mum

Lamia, we're late!

00:39:19,992

Lamia

Yes mum I am coming.Just packing my stuff, and
 I'll join you.

00:40:28,855

Lamia

Thank you, professor. I have the honor to
present my research paper, entitled, 'Introduction to Association Genetics', at Coronilas Corpoïdes. Coronilas Corpoïdes can be used in the medical field and the perfume industry. Anti-fungal and anti-agulism antimalarial activities are widely recognized. Some of the most abundant families of plants are psoralens, gsontoxin and bercaptene. Indeed, the role of psoralen in the field of the manufacture of sunscreens is widely recognized...

00:41:21,280

Lamia's proffesor

Are your parents present?

00:41:23,006

Lamia

My parents… Where is my dad? Dad!

00:41:33,280

Lamia's proffesor

Mrs Lamia Hakim, congratulations, you have
earned the highest score for your thesis. Congrats.

00:41:43,849

Lamia

Thank you.

00:42:37,640

Aya

I wish I'd become a butterfly and fly to places
where I won't to be exposed to the sun, instead
of being trapped in the house because of the sun, so I can go out at any time of the day.

00:43:44,400

Lamia

 I live for the day. Thinking about the future
makes me anxious. I try not to overthink, and try to make the best out of my day. Even if I get a bad day, I don't care. Everyone thinks that I am strong, that I am battling my illness, that's true, but I do have my moments of weakness too. And it's very hard to manage.

00:44:21,334

Lamia

Emna, I am going to get up!

00:44:26,520

Emna

Just turn and have a look.

00:44:31,320

Lamia

Who is that lady?

00:44:33,040

Emna

Who's that lady? Check the color of the lipstick.
Do you want a darker shade?

00:44:39,243

Lamia

No, wait. Wait!

00:44:41,680

Emna

Have a closer look at your lips.

00:44:44,240

Lamia

At a certain point in my life, I felt like I was living
 a double life. I felt like I had two separate lives, one during daytime that includes protection, sunscreen, insults and all that you can think of, and another short life during the night. Since we're not really allowed to stay out late, till 3 a.m. for instance... If I could do that, I'd certainly stay out past 3 a.m. So, technically I get very few hours in which I can enjoy life. I feel like, during the daytime, that I am more like a robot who puts on sunscreen as a shield and goes out on a mission, either to study, go to the doctor, or whatever she has to do, with no feelings attached to it.

00:45:55,200

Emna

Go easy on her. She is not a plastic doll.
Take your hands off.

00:46:04,680

Lamia

Give us your opinion.

00:46:05,920

Male hairdresser

Oh my god, you look so beautiful. Wow. Wow.
Look at her beauty, ma'am!

00:47:16,560

Lamia

Recently, one of the children of the moon
passed away. I asked my father, who's next? I
wonder who is next. I think to myself, maybe it's going to be me. Knowing that the life expectancy for children of the moon does not exceed 22 to 23 years, the time left is shrinking.

00:51:00,360

Lamia

In this world, I don't even have the right to
dream. You know, when I see a couple, I ask myself, why not me! Why not me? I feel overwhelmed. I have no answer. Then I laugh. Why? Why not me? You'd probably tell me to be happy with what God has given you, and accept your fate. I do believe in God, but I am also a human being made of blood and flesh. I am not made out steel. I am a woman with feelings. It hurts when a relative tells me, "we hope to see you as a bride walking down the aisle." My answer is that my ultimate happiness, is when my soul leaves to a better place. It hurts me when a guy tells me that I am pretty, gorgeous and sexy, but not for marriage. Why am I not for marriage? Is it because of these little spots I have on my skin? Or, because I can't go outside during the day? Why am I not for marriage? It's hard to imagine someone who's not allowed to dream. I can't have a dream. I'm not allowed. You have to feel it. When I think about myself, I close my eyes, I dream of me, married with kids. And then I hear the word, 'Mum'. And then I shout at myself, "Wake up, it's not meant for you!" Why me? Okay. I am thankful for what I have. Maybe God has other plans for me. But I am also human, I have feelings too. My boyfriend, after a two year relationship, When I first met him, I told him that I was a child of the moon. It's not just a flu that will go away in time. It's for life. He accepted me for what I am. Then, after a two year relationship, after two years, he left me.

00:57:03,160

Lamia

I want to sing. I want to sing. And I fly to show to
others, that I am a human being, a beautiful soul, an artist. I will speak up. My words will be taken into account. I picture myself as the moon that illuminates the nights. I will go ahead. Nothing will stop me. I will fulfill my dream. Within it, I will succeed.