Gaddafi... Our Biggest Typo Ever!

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We're all busy lately and our lives seem to have changed. No. Correction: our perspectives towards life has changed.

In writing, there's this technique that helps you get warmed up and allow your ideas to flow. It's called free writing. You just write write write write without looking back at what you wrote, then once you're done, leave it cool for a bit (an hour, two, a day...a week?). If you're lucky enough to remember it again (jk) you go back to it and you notice that you're looking at it with a fresh eye. You read on and find yourself saying, "What the Hell is that?" "I can't believe I wrote this," and "Oops, typo."

Get the picture?

I'm not saying you use this technique in life. No. That's way too time-consuming, and what's worse, it would mess up your life rather than fix it. 

Perhaps, as Libyans, that's exactly how we led our lives. For decades now we've been using this weird technique of living along, stopping loads of times to look back and see where our lives went wrong, but little did we do to fix it. No proof-reading. No great big efforts to delete, copy and paste...

And we've avoided correcting the great big typo of all time... Muammar Gaddafi.

For those who don't know what Typo means, here's the definition: a small mistake in a text made when it was typed or printed (dictionary.cambridge.org)

GASP!!!

So, when you have a typo in your written context, the whole thing becomes out of proportion, and its true value is lost. Wait. It has no value to begin with. People might let it slide, but since it's all wrong, it won't get anywhere. 

Gaddafi's regime started off like that. It didn't have a good proofreader, and perhaps they didn't want one. Remember when you wanted to do something so much that you were positive it was right, and didn't want anything to come in your way and say otherwise, that was probably thei philosophy too. But wait a minute. This is not just going out behind your Mom's back in Ramadan and grabbing a piece of embatin from the kitchen and then think nothing's gonna happen. This is about governing people and bearing responsibility. 

Gaddafi's reign was all wasted in gaining power, entitling himself, his family and members of his tribe to rule and sabotage.

Going back into all that is just a pain in the head.

By Maya Zankoul ^_^

I hope we've all taken the opportunity to vent out during the past - long!- six months, to say what we've always longed to say about the regime.

Now's the time to start rowing in a new direction, a better one.

The revolution is definitely a blessing from Allah to get us back on our feet and claim our rights, and start living a decent life. We need to work hard, plan properly, and even dream properly! Let's not be selfish for everybody's sake and dream about things that would profit our entire community.

If you dream to be a teacher, add to that how you can devise a teaching system to whatever subject you're specializing in, and how that's gonna impact on your students... and then future students. You'll be saving the next generations!

If you're a businessman, think of how you can benefit not just your pocket but also the country's industry which would eventually help decrease unemployment rates!

It's great to dream big. But always think about how it's gonna affect the world around you. Now that's what I'd call success!

Surely you've been told at one time- or many times if you live in a "nagging" environment- to sit down with yourself at the end of the day to go through your daily activity. So, if you've done good deeds then give yourself a pat on the back. Bad deeds? well, make sure you regret them and make up for it the next day... or even better, your days yet to come!

Yeah. Do this. You'll probably forget sometimes, so make sure you train yourself. As you rest your head to sleep at night, before or after you say your evening Athkar - please tell me you do that T___T - and start interrogating yourself.

Our country's gonna be a great place soon, that's for sure, inshallah. The important thing is that we make good use of the time being and think think think of those stairs that will help us rise :) 

Nuf said.

Till next time,

Hana S.

Ramadan This Year...

Yet another year goes by.

It's amazing - a blessing too- to witness this holy month once again :)

It's also a relief that most Muslim countries are fasting together, or that our Lunatic didn't decide to fast differently than our freedom fighters. Lunatic: he can do anything!

This time last year, I was up to my ears applying finishing touches to my research project. The whole process was fun, but chaotic all at the same time. My family was here for the last 10 days of Ramadan and my deadline was a day or two after Eid. So you can almost imagine my being on my toes all along.

So, obviously, this year's different. My family's not here. It's my first Ramadan to spend alone; my third here in the UK. The first two my brother used to come ahead of time, enjoying the summer and then waiting for the remainder of our family to join in and then they'd go home together.

And then life goes back to normal. The dull normal.

But in the end, we get by. You remember you have a great faith in Allah, that these things happen for a reason, and I'm glad to notice that this predicament has made our family much stronger. You just don't know what they're doing every hour of every day, however, you keep praying for their safety and telling yourself that they're doing fine.

Fighting continues on the western front line of Misurata, and any wayward shelling from the opposite side is more than likely at any time.

Then again... there's the faith. You believe that nothing will happen unless it's in God's will.

Today's the fourth day of this blessed month. How're you doing so far? Are you pleasing God? Do you think you're doing it right? May Allah help and guide us all...

Ramadan Mubarak :)

Till next time,

Hana S.