This is the land of Moses, and a refuge for the baby Jesus:
The mathematical genius that are the pyramids
Luxor, Alexandria, the tombs of the Pharoah
What we call “ Ancient Civilizations”.
Forgotten? The people who we know as Egyptians:
Egypt – the land of freedom in Arabic
Nestled in the hot, dusty, difficult terrain of the Sahara
An educated people; passive – some would even say docile:
Polite to a fault: accepting of their fate:
Many highly educated: many unemployed
Living a bare subsistence of existence.
A complex nation of 80 million people
Shia and Sunni Muslim, Christians, others
Held together by history and geography
Torn apart by dictators and thieves
Standing on the banks of the Nile, watching the sun rise,
Listening to the call to prayer coming from a local mosques
( a sound that one never forgets – somehow inspiring)
It is easy to romanticize the time of the ancients
With Cleopatra, the Pharaohs, glimmering caskets
Regal palaces and international trade intrigue
Somehow, someway, the “common man” gets lost in this narrative
News media regale us with the observations that Mubarak is
Not listening to the people –such a simplistic view
It’s about dignity, independence, trust, and economic freedom
Thus the revolution of 2011.
Such a timeless lesson of history and human fate.
All civilizations eventually crumble and fail
Products of internal decay, excess, and weakness.
Let us consider that decay destroys from the inside out
From the epicenter to the observable skin and structural damage.
So it is with all societies. Destruction begins with the end of the nuclear family
Egypt is ending due to a lack of trust in the head of their family – their President
In the United States, we are faced with the erosion of the basic family unit.
With a high percentage of children born – fatherless : what does that create?
Another generation of trustless populace: Uncommitted, uncaring:
We are in charge of our individual and collective destiny
The question – do we have the heart, will and desire to make a difference?
The answer my friends is blowing in the wind.
rlhassociates 