The Perfect Diasaster-DA

I’m a Lebanese citizen. My country means the world to me and you’d think after all that happened in Lebanon, it wouldn’t be struck again. After 17 years of civil war Lebanon turned into one of the most beautiful places in the entire world. There are many people who you might say are psychic, but war is one thing no one can predict. I’ve never felt really safe in Lebanon, but when I finally did, war crept its way into my life. It inched its way forward damaging everything around it, its darkness dimming everything in sight. My personal experience through the war was as dark and painful as war itself.

I had a bad feeling as I stepped into the plane I nodded as the steward greeted me smiling from ear to ear. “Darn it,” I muttered under my breath as I tripped over an old lady’s bag. I sat in my seat and told myself to calm down. “What is it with me and planes?” I thought as I scanned the airplane and the people surrounding me.

As the plane took off, I slept like a baby and I awoke to the sound of my mother telling me it was time to eat. I opened my aluminum foil and Yuck!!! Grilled chicken with beans!!! I plainly told my mother that I wasn’t hungry, as I rested my head, the passenger announcement came on. “What now!” I thought to myself, it was the pilot, “Please stay calm. We are the last plane to leave Beirut because Israel bombed the Harriri airport. I sat up suddenly thinking it was a dream, I couldn’t believe my ears. Oh no! The butterflies again. I bent forward feeling like I was carrying the whole plane on my back.

After a while I managed to think straight, how in the world would Lebanon get into a war with Israel?! I turned to my dad who was sitting on my right and asked him, “Hey dad, are we really in a war or am I overreacting?” My dad replied shocked as ever, “Don’t worry everything’s going to be fine you’re safe.” That’s when I realized I didn’t care about my safety at all. All I cared about were my family and friends in Lebanon, suddenly I felt homesick. After we landed and left the airport, my father directly turned on the radio. At first I wanted to scream, “Dad please put F.M!” but then it all came rushing back to me. There was nothing about Lebanon on the radio. “What if I can’t return to Lebanon? Will I see my house and my people ever again?” I erased that thought quickly from my mind. I prayed to God to protect Lebanon and my home, and for the people in Lebanon. Finally I prayed for Hezbollah.

Back home in Germany, I cried and cried until I thought I didn’t have any water in me to cry anymore. After two days I thought the war was over. Little did I know I was in for a big surprise. In a matter of days a war began. I began suffering from depression. Soon I discovered an enormous amount of hatred towards Israel; I made fun of the Israeli army and unfortunately the civilians too. Finally I realized hating Israel would do me no good. No matter what I did I couldn’t look at their side of the story.

We were all waiting for a ceasefire, Oh, how long we waited…One day I awoke hearing my brother scream,: Ceasefire, Ceasefire!” Those words were like music to my ears, as I ran into the living room, the morning sunlight heated up my face. When I got to the living room I saw that indeed the war was finally over. Over the next few days, I saw the destruction Israel caused, I could feel their hatred, smell their aggression and hear their bombs. Soon I realized Hezbollah defended Lebanon from the most aggressive country in the world.

When I returned to Lebanon I was an appreciative person. The war indeed toughened me up, I believe that my experience made me more open minded to things around me, now I believe I’m prepared to face anything that comes my way. If you ask me the war has changed me in a lot of ways but the most important change is that it made me realize how much I care for and love my country.