Touching The Sky
The most fascinating view for me when I was five year was the blue color of the sky with the glittering stars and puffy clouds. My dearest dream was to touch the sky and have a handful of that blue substance, but how? I did not know.
In the way home after a long school day, I looked at our house from a distance, the sky was touching the roof of our house. I was nearly to dance out of happiness, my feet were flying to reach the house. Now, I can touch the sky.
I threw my books on the ground and ran upstairs to climb the roof, I raised my two arms up to embrace the sky and touch it with my finger, but, it was faraway. I began to jump as high as I can but the same result, I brought few blocks of brick, piled them vertically and stood on top of them, still the result was very disappointing, ended with a dusty school uniform.
I looked at the houses near ours and farther. I saw a high bridge, the sky was on the bridge. So, I thought if I stand on the top of the bridge, I will be able to touch the sky and make my dream real. I left the house and ran as fast as I can towards the bridge.
On top of the bridge, the sky looked even farther and farther, after few childish attempts to touch it I returned with a fist full of wind, I looked around and tried to reach the farthest point. Again, I saw that the sky is on the trees and houses at the end of the horizon. “One day I will have the chance to go there and touch it.” I comforted myself.
This dream kept living with me till now, but it took a new shape since the US occupation to Iraq in 2003. I began to jump again but on burning roofs, damaged buildings and broken bridges in a bid to touch the sky of the US democracy in Iraq, I got back with a fist full of smoke.
After three years, I have realized that searching for the US democracy in Iraq is like the crazy idea of trying to touch the sky, whenever you feel you are close to, you discover that you are farther and farther. Both are impossible and they slip out of your hand very swiftly.
Up till now, the US officials still insist that the most remarkable achievement for the US in Iraq is Democracy represented at least in freedom of speech, Iraqis now have the right to criticize anything and anybody, they do not agree with openly, a right, they were deprived of for ages.
To be fair, I have to say this is true, the Iraqis now are free to criticize and speak openly but, unfortunately, about one thing only which is the US itself, for granting them this bloody democracy, in a way they are shouting now louder than any time before, “ Down, Down USA,” “Down, Down US Democracy,” “ Down, Down US occupation of Iraq.”
The predicament of the US democracy in Iraq is that it is gone lost with its first step in the jungle of Mesopotamia, despite all the rescue campaigns carried out by the 150,000 US soldier who carried it on their arms and protected it with their guns all that long way from the US to Iraq, despite all the maps and binoculars, despite all pompous fame of CIA that it even can enter your bed room at any moment and tell you how it looks like, all the attempts to recover the US democracy failed and concluded with a big bounty for any one who can inform or help in finding this shrewd creature.
The US officials till now do not dare to admit the fact that the US democracy is gone missing under the layers of clerics’ turbans and the labyrinth of Halal and Harm because it is something hard for the Americans to understand.
The Iraqis were yearning to taste the US democracy dish and see how it looks like but with the first spoon, they spitted it away and immediately leaflets distributed all over Iraq warn of tasting US democracy dish and threaten to slaughter any one come close.
Meha Abdul Kariem is a Sunni woman married to Muhammed Yousif who is Shiite for ten years now and has two kids.
“ I can not stand Ja’aferi government, he is very bad and his ministers are worse than him particularly this minister of Interior.” Meha was talking to her husband Mohammed angrily.
“ No, do not say that, This government is composed of men who are grandsons of Imam Ali, all of them are “ Alawi”, it is a big Harm to criticize them, God will be upset of you.” Muhammed answered his wife.
I was doing a story about horses race in Iraq, when the editor in Washington read that the race track in Mansour district was destroyed and a gigantic mosque was built instead according to an order by Saddam, she said “ Now, Saddam has gone, Why do not you "Iraqis" destroy the mosque and restore the race truck?!!!!!!!!
The best example of the US democracy I can see now in Iraq is the image of Sunnis and Shiite standing against each other on the bodies of the Iraqis like two cowboys playing the famous American game of who will kill the other first.
In the way home after a long school day, I looked at our house from a distance, the sky was touching the roof of our house. I was nearly to dance out of happiness, my feet were flying to reach the house. Now, I can touch the sky.
I threw my books on the ground and ran upstairs to climb the roof, I raised my two arms up to embrace the sky and touch it with my finger, but, it was faraway. I began to jump as high as I can but the same result, I brought few blocks of brick, piled them vertically and stood on top of them, still the result was very disappointing, ended with a dusty school uniform.
I looked at the houses near ours and farther. I saw a high bridge, the sky was on the bridge. So, I thought if I stand on the top of the bridge, I will be able to touch the sky and make my dream real. I left the house and ran as fast as I can towards the bridge.
On top of the bridge, the sky looked even farther and farther, after few childish attempts to touch it I returned with a fist full of wind, I looked around and tried to reach the farthest point. Again, I saw that the sky is on the trees and houses at the end of the horizon. “One day I will have the chance to go there and touch it.” I comforted myself.
This dream kept living with me till now, but it took a new shape since the US occupation to Iraq in 2003. I began to jump again but on burning roofs, damaged buildings and broken bridges in a bid to touch the sky of the US democracy in Iraq, I got back with a fist full of smoke.
After three years, I have realized that searching for the US democracy in Iraq is like the crazy idea of trying to touch the sky, whenever you feel you are close to, you discover that you are farther and farther. Both are impossible and they slip out of your hand very swiftly.
Up till now, the US officials still insist that the most remarkable achievement for the US in Iraq is Democracy represented at least in freedom of speech, Iraqis now have the right to criticize anything and anybody, they do not agree with openly, a right, they were deprived of for ages.
To be fair, I have to say this is true, the Iraqis now are free to criticize and speak openly but, unfortunately, about one thing only which is the US itself, for granting them this bloody democracy, in a way they are shouting now louder than any time before, “ Down, Down USA,” “Down, Down US Democracy,” “ Down, Down US occupation of Iraq.”
The predicament of the US democracy in Iraq is that it is gone lost with its first step in the jungle of Mesopotamia, despite all the rescue campaigns carried out by the 150,000 US soldier who carried it on their arms and protected it with their guns all that long way from the US to Iraq, despite all the maps and binoculars, despite all pompous fame of CIA that it even can enter your bed room at any moment and tell you how it looks like, all the attempts to recover the US democracy failed and concluded with a big bounty for any one who can inform or help in finding this shrewd creature.
The US officials till now do not dare to admit the fact that the US democracy is gone missing under the layers of clerics’ turbans and the labyrinth of Halal and Harm because it is something hard for the Americans to understand.
The Iraqis were yearning to taste the US democracy dish and see how it looks like but with the first spoon, they spitted it away and immediately leaflets distributed all over Iraq warn of tasting US democracy dish and threaten to slaughter any one come close.
Meha Abdul Kariem is a Sunni woman married to Muhammed Yousif who is Shiite for ten years now and has two kids.
“ I can not stand Ja’aferi government, he is very bad and his ministers are worse than him particularly this minister of Interior.” Meha was talking to her husband Mohammed angrily.
“ No, do not say that, This government is composed of men who are grandsons of Imam Ali, all of them are “ Alawi”, it is a big Harm to criticize them, God will be upset of you.” Muhammed answered his wife.
I was doing a story about horses race in Iraq, when the editor in Washington read that the race track in Mansour district was destroyed and a gigantic mosque was built instead according to an order by Saddam, she said “ Now, Saddam has gone, Why do not you "Iraqis" destroy the mosque and restore the race truck?!!!!!!!!
The best example of the US democracy I can see now in Iraq is the image of Sunnis and Shiite standing against each other on the bodies of the Iraqis like two cowboys playing the famous American game of who will kill the other first.
posted by Ishtar at 1:57 AM
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