Thursday, December 17, 2009

my love/hate relationship with a country

I hate you because you attach labels to me since I am American; I love you because being American makes life easier

I hate you because your men drool at any woman that walks by; I love you because even on my worst days I feel beautiful

I hate you because your passion leads to fights and drama; I love you because your passion is beautiful and strong

I hate you because hot water and gas are limited; I love you because I now have a new appreciation for hot water and gas

I hate you because I attempt to understand your broken English but you refuse to understand my broken Arabic; I love you for attempting English, even if it is broken, so that I do not have to struggle with my broken Arabic

I hate you for not stressing the future because you feel it is “hopeless”; I love you for teaching me how to live in the moment

I hate you for judging me when I wear something that “shows too much skin”; I love you for showing me how to respect my body

I hate you for getting me addicted to argillah; I love you for argillah and the hours people spend doing nothing but talking and smoking

I hate you for making things hard for girls to do; I love you for your people who are always willing to help as if I was a sister

I hate you for considering Applebees, Fridays and Bennigans fancy restaurants; I love you for Hashim and Reem which allow you to experience amazing food and culture

I hate you for your duwars, lack of lanes in the streets, and people driving with their eyes closed; I love you for your simplicity, even though I have a crappy sense of direction, I can never get lost (I just look for the towers)

I hate you for starting to build towers and then stopping more than halfway through because it was not practical; I love you for the attempt at building 2 towers and for making a landmark so that I can never get lost

I hate you for only having around 5 places to go on a weekend; I love you for the lack of options because I am horrible at making decisions

I hate you because you need wastaa for everything; I love you because once you have wastaa you can get anything

I hate you for thinking my name is a boys name; I love you for having heard my name before and me not being the first and only Naseem you know

I hate you because your sand and dirt make my car a mess; I love you because your sand and dirt are where the camels live

I hate you for making me not want to go back; I love you because you gave me exactly what I needed when I needed it (an amazing, life changing experience)

* My list of loves/hates can go on forever, but at the end of the day inta beladii… and ana mabsoota!

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Argillah- hookah
Duwar- circle/roundabout
Wastaa-connections
Inta beladii- ur my land
Ana mabsoota- I am happy/content/satisfied

1 comment:

  1. im satisfied with wt u wrote but i also would like 2 read my name and 2 tell ur people ur friends that im the one who makes u smile :P
    (maltoosh)

    ReplyDelete

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