From Gaza to London: Mr. Bean’s Forced Displacement from Home

Adam, my 4-and-a-half-year-old son, was watching the animated Mr. Bean series last night. In one episode titled “Driving on the Beach,” Mr. Bean heads to the beach, taking his Mini with him to help along the way.

As I went about my tasks, I suddenly heard Adam speaking aloud to himself. “Mr. Bean is fleeing his home in London. Israel ordered him to flee too,” he said. Surprised, I walked over to him for clarification.

“What did you just say, Adam?” I asked.

“Look, Mama,” he replied, mimicking Mr. Bean’s way of saying “Loooook,” pointing to the screen. “Mr. Bean put all his belongings on top of his car, just like we did when we fled from al-Tuffah, al-Maghazi, and Rafah.”

He paused for a moment, as if weighing his thoughts, then added, “He’s heading to the beach now.”

My heart sank as I realized what he was saying. Adam believed that Mr. Bean’s journey to the beach was somehow like the forced displacements we’ve experienced. To him, the beach was a refuge, just as many in Gaza have turned to the beach after being displaced by the ongoing Israeli genocide.

I stood there, unsure of how to respond. A child of four, thinking in such a way, about fleeing, about displacement, shouldn’t have to bear such thoughts. Children are meant to dream of play, of a future full of joy and candy. Yet here was my little boy, connecting what he saw on screen to the painful reality we have lived.

“I think he’s just going to the beach for a vacation, not fleeing,” I said gently, trying to shield him from the weight of his thoughts. I wanted to preserve his innocence, to remind him that there are still happy moments in the world.

Adam, however, wasn’t convinced. “I thought he was evacuating like people here,” he said quietly while still watching the screen.

I paused, swallowing the lump in my throat, and decided to let him continue watching. “Continue watching the episode, and you’ll see,” I told him softly.

But before I could leave, I added, “One day, we will put our things on the car like Mr. Bean and go to the sea to spend joyful moments together.”