You can’t say ‘Happy new year’ during a genocide, can you? So, it’s a strange feeling these days. Specially at this end of the world. Look at it from any perspective, from any angle. In such situations, when there are too many dichotomies around me, I need to have a one-on-one chat with myself. ‘Where am I now?’
‘What is my stance?’
Stance?
These last four months, while witnessing a genocide in Palestine, and not being able to stop it, has made me realize that we are all big nincompoops. Totally useless!
Isn’t that how we all are feeling now?
Yet, so grateful for our own free country, at this point in time. The Palestinians suffered for 75 years to end up experiencing this???
Expressed our solidarity with Palestinians:
No, it wasn’t as if we did nothing. As an influencer, I’ve shared all the atrocities experienced by Palestinians. Also, sent donations to Palestine, in spite of the hinderances. I did it through USA, and through Al Khidmat in Pakistan. As an artist, we all held an exhibition to express our solidarity with Palestinians too. So we did what we could. (Even though it wasn’t very much.)
It has been extremely painful watching what is being condoned by USA, UK, Germany and many other countries. It is horrific.
Reality check:
I suppose now it is just a shifting of mindset. In what way? It is like you put some folks on a pedestal. It comes as a blow, when you realize, they actually don’t belong there. In fact they are the lowest of the low. Yes, I’m speaking of Biden and PM of Britain. (being an Indian, I’m not surprised too, Indians are used to conducting genocides, as they do regularly in Kashmir.) US and UK both have a lot of blood on their hands in their murky past. (I don’t know why we kept feeling that all that crap they keep dishing out about ‘humanity’ and ‘peace’ and controling the dying of rare whales’ species and what not, would have sunk into them too.
Nopes!
You can feel for the whales, or any species in the world. But you cannot feel the pain that Palestinians have been feeling during last few months? In fact, actually, becoming an active part of the genocide by providing bombs and fuel for it is unthinkable. The heads of the states went ahead with it, even though their people weren’t party to it.
Biggest mindset shift:
That illusion that we all carried, of how great and humane, all people in the West are, has gone with the wind. No longer. After all, you can be the most brilliant person on earth, caring for all species wherever they are. And are seen conniving with the worst of the worst to end up killing 12000 children knowingly. Is unforgivable. The greatest crime.
The world watches on, thunderstruck.
We know one thing:
At least, we aren’t as bad they as they are. All these years, we felt like absolute nincompoops; useless at everything. Now, we can raise our heads high and say, ‘no matter how useless and ‘bad’ and ‘backward’ or ‘barbarians’ we may be, we are still better than them!
Are we?
At least in this way we are. We would never be supportive of anyone conducting a genocide.
All these years we have been crying out for the rights of Kashmiris, Palestinians, and anyone in the world who is facing genocide of any type, like those in Myanmar did recently.
Anyhow, as individuals, we are much better, along with many of those who stood up against the genocide in US, UK, Canada and many other countries of the world.
Thank God, good guys are there!
In fact, just as the ‘bad guys’ faces became crystal clear, so did those of the good guys. Suddenly, they too have become more apparent. There are many of them, tens of thousands ….. in millions all over the world. Thank goodness.
Its just that all of us together, couldn’t stop the genocide.
Even though Yemen has tried its bit. That tiny, war-torn Yemen. Then there has been Ireland, Qatar and Iran who openly stood with Palestine. Amazing.
We are cowards, I guess, but we need to preserve our own skins too.
Hats off to Ukraine and Palestinians:
Here we are at the new year of 2024. Let’s start with a big salute to Ukraine and Palestine, their bravery is amazing. When Ukraine had been attacked by Russia, one felt that their war would be over in one month. It wasn’t. Now it is going on second year of it. Palestinians have recently started out with Israel’s declaration of war with them . (In previous times, the battlefields would be right out of the towns and cities. Now the city itself has become the battle field.) I don’t think there is a single word in the dictionary to describe all we saw, except the word ‘genocide’.
All these years, I’ve lived, believing that this word genocide belongs to the medieval times. Here it is, right before our eyes in 2024.
Social media played its role:
Instagram itself is like having a window opening into this battlefield. Day in and day out we have been a witness and seen Palestinians; dead, their dying babies, children, women and men in war.
It was men like Shaun King, and many Palestinian journalists including girls who spoke out. They brought the news to the world, in the hope that someone somewhere would be able to help them.
No one helped them.
Now there is this deafening silence, as one by one, over a hundred journalists got killed along with their families.
And we continued to watch helplessly.
Look around:
I look around me, here in Pakistan. Last year, I was feeling as if it was only in Pakistan, that freedom of speech was being controlled. But then I’ve looked ahead and found that it is getting to be the same in other parts of the world too. There too, you can speak in favor of LGBT but not against, you can be ‘humane’ about everything and everyone, except – yeah you got it; humans in Palestine. Shaun King has been removed from Instagram, though he was only showing the world what they needed to see. People of the world have a right to know, specially, when it comes to tax-payers of US, and UK who need to know where their hard earned taxes are being used, and by whom!
American tax payers spoke out that they are not party to this genocide, but… it still carried on.
Get smarter and stronger:
A new perspective: Everything is possible in this world and at any time. Simple. It was like that too, and now it is become more so. Just beware, and make your own world.
Apni duniya ap paida kar, agar zindon mein hai.
-Iqbal.
Let us make our own world beautiful.
The more of evil there is on earth, the more we have to heal and be a balm for others. I’ve watched trucks going from Pakistan with goods and medical aid by Al-Khidmat. It’s a small contribution but it is much better than doing nothing.
We need to get together, and be the best form of ourselves that we can be. So, we can be able to do what we want.
Just as the evil doers have really worked hard for where they are today, others who aren’t evil, (that includes good guys here and all over the world,) need to get organized and treble their efforts to counteract.
We have definitely fallen short, that’s why we couldn’t help those in distress. Let us get stronger, and gather our strengths.
My life in 2024:
I started my YouTube channel in 2021 a month before I discovered I had cancer. During my treatment, whenever, I got a breather, I’d do a podcast or something. It would boost me up too. Now, vlogging is my latest craze; yesterday I uploaded my #37th vlog. Yet, this blogging continues too.
I’ve been writing for over thirty-three years now – since 1990 – so it’s a habit I cannot leave. (I’m sure many of my readers are that age, or younger!)
I love your comments in my YouTube channel and these mean a lot to me. Whereas, on Instagram I’ve put limitations to the comments, on YouTube, I’ve kept it open. Anyone can write anything, as I really want to get genuine feedback about my work. Thankfully I’ve received enough to keep me going.
Blaring dichotomy
Feeling the dichotomy of life. Back to the Palestine-Israeli situation; It is so hard to believe, that Israelis whose forefathers were themselves victims of holocaust are the actual ones carrying out the genocide? That too, to the persons who had originally saved them! Also, they had nothing to do with that holocaust. Can you believe it? It is important to remember, that these Palestinians were the ones who had opened their doors to Jews who had escaped from Germany’s gas chambers. In fact, when they had come all broken up, to these same Palestinians in 1941, it was they who gave them space in their land to heal themselves.
Germany sits pristine, siding with Israel now. Awesome!
You are wondering why I’m putting words to things you already know. Because, it is important to articulate it. This is how it is now. This is what we have witnessed.
Go on, articulate it to yourself, too.
Forget them. We Pakistanis have enough on our own plate:
The mess that Pakistan is in right now, is also worth pondering about. Each one of us has to be the best form of whatever they are.
We have to hold on to this beautiful land, its people, this freedom (a heavy price was paid for it.) Get ourselves in order. If that isn’t possible now, be the best that you can be. There is plenty to be proud of in this land of ours. We have so much talent and this amazing sunshine, which I’m just crazy about. The winters here are to die for. I wish we could make so much solar energy that we can export it to other countries.
Excuse me, this is my lovey dovey time with Misty, my cat.
Stay blessed and Happy new year! ?
