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28.2%ANMag Issue 21 Personal Maintenance
Lebanon
By Tarek Khaled, Staff Writer
New York, United States − In Lebanon, the sun shines because it wants to;
It smiles just because it is over this land;
Here, it shines because it has to.
In Lebanon, a full moon hangs in the evening sky;
It is there to share the laughs of people;
Here, the moon looks down with its face shy.
In Lebanon, clouds are not in existence;
Here, they hover in persistence.
In Lebanon, people are jerks by choice,
But deep down, they glow with humanity;
Here, people are jerks by nature,
Rule of the jungle type of society.
In Lebanon, people lie, steal and cheat out of necessity;
Here, people’s souls are robbed out of greed.
Let my people steal and cheat me;
At least it is for a good cause.
In Lebanon; people are fake but still human,
Full of emotions;
Here, people are real but they are robots,
Cold as stone
It has been raining here for the past five days, ever since I came back.
I think these clouds were sent by Lebanon to weep for me.
If that is the case, I would have to create a new Noah’s Arch because this rain will not stop till I go back. On this Arch, I will gather all the Lebanese people to bring them back. What can I say; I am in love with this country.
Talk about being survivors. I think − no, I know − that if it were any other peoples, they would crumble if they go through half of what the Lebanese people have been through. It is true we have a lot of issues, but these issues are very much justified.
People are insecure and have an inferiority complex. Why? Let us see; we have been occupied God knows by how many nations; the country was reduced to damn-near-dust because we were betrayed by our own leaders; millions became orphans of the motherland after fleeing to other countries. Should I keep going? The road to recovery is seldom easy; if it means that women have to inject themselves with silicon to feel better, so be it…
The relics of the past still linger about. They stuff them selves with moth balls to keep from rotting. They smile through their teeth and try to cover their crimes, but no air freshener can ever cover the smell of the rotting carcasses they all have in their closets. I am afraid that time is the only thing that will rid us of those vestiges.