In Arabic, the word “bayt” translates literally as house, but its connotations resonate beyond rooms and walls, summoning longings gathered about family and home. In the Middle East, bayt is sacred. Empires fall. Nations topple. Borders may shift. Old loyalties may dissolve or, without warning, be altered. Home, whether it be structure or familiar ground, is finally the identity that does not fade.
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/opinion/sunday/house-of-stone.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/19/opinion/sunday/house-of-stone.html
