The beginning of the end
Saturday, May 19, 2007
I don't know how to start.. the last three days have been very chaotic.
Grandpa died on Tuesday morning, it was raining very heavily, as if it was crying on him.. the wind was blowing in the house with a nice breeze as the family was reading Quran on him. I came home from college, all wet, shaking, I didn't know what to do, but I did okay.
On Wednesday, our house was full of women who were paying us visits of condolences.. The men were in the mosque on the other side of Mosul.
It was 7:30 when we started hearing very loud explosions. All the women moved to safer rooms in the house, and everyone started calling to see if their relatives are okay. Several explosions followed..
At about 8 o'clock, Nineveh channel announced a curfew starting at 7:30.. Everybody got stuck.
We had 25 women sleeping at our house with no previous notice.. Almost everybody started laughing hysterically, grandma forgot all about her loss and got busy trying to figure out what to do..
We borrowed mattresses from the neighbors. We fortunately had enough food for dinner.. The rest of the night was everything but a funeral.
The men hid their cars in houses in the neighborhood, they divided themselves into three groups and slept at three or four houses, people in the neighborhood were really hospitable.
My uncle's house was one of the houses.. 25 men slept there. There was only one women there, my poor 15-year-old cousin who stayed home to study.
I went online and she started to count the men at their house, and I the women, while people on both sides tried to identify their relatives.. Mobile services were really bad that day, I called dad about one hundred times (106 to be exact) to see if they're okay and what's happening.
It was the weirdest day.. I found myself holding a ringing mobile and shouting loud to see whose it was several times..
Most of the women stayed up late talking.. I slept at about 2 AM, I was exhausted..
On the next day, the curfew didn't end.. Some of the men walked to the bridge and rode on ambulances and police cars to the other side, then walked to our house, took their women and walked to their houses or their relatives'.. The number of visitors went down to 7, this time men and women whose houses were too far.
Today, we only have 3 visitors, all too old to walk home, the curfew is still on.
I bet you've all forgotten grandpa has died by now, like I do most of the time now because of all that's going on..
Mosul is a mess now.. Many buildings are badly damaged as I saw on TV. Thank God everyone is safe.
Many many years ago, on grandpa and grandma's wedding, they mistakenly put mice poison instead of salt, and everyone was poisoned and transferred to the hospital..
Nobody forgot the wedding, or the incident of the wedding anyway.. and now no one's going to forget the funeral.
Grandpa was a great man, loved by everyone, very educated and dedicated to his work.. and now I know he's also full of surprises..
Say a prayer for him.. May his soul rest in peace.
We're still waiting for the curfew to stop..
Say a prayer for us..
and a very long prayer for Mosul.. and the lost peace..
Grandpa died on Tuesday morning, it was raining very heavily, as if it was crying on him.. the wind was blowing in the house with a nice breeze as the family was reading Quran on him. I came home from college, all wet, shaking, I didn't know what to do, but I did okay.
On Wednesday, our house was full of women who were paying us visits of condolences.. The men were in the mosque on the other side of Mosul.
It was 7:30 when we started hearing very loud explosions. All the women moved to safer rooms in the house, and everyone started calling to see if their relatives are okay. Several explosions followed..
At about 8 o'clock, Nineveh channel announced a curfew starting at 7:30.. Everybody got stuck.
We had 25 women sleeping at our house with no previous notice.. Almost everybody started laughing hysterically, grandma forgot all about her loss and got busy trying to figure out what to do..
We borrowed mattresses from the neighbors. We fortunately had enough food for dinner.. The rest of the night was everything but a funeral.
The men hid their cars in houses in the neighborhood, they divided themselves into three groups and slept at three or four houses, people in the neighborhood were really hospitable.
My uncle's house was one of the houses.. 25 men slept there. There was only one women there, my poor 15-year-old cousin who stayed home to study.
I went online and she started to count the men at their house, and I the women, while people on both sides tried to identify their relatives.. Mobile services were really bad that day, I called dad about one hundred times (106 to be exact) to see if they're okay and what's happening.
It was the weirdest day.. I found myself holding a ringing mobile and shouting loud to see whose it was several times..
Most of the women stayed up late talking.. I slept at about 2 AM, I was exhausted..
On the next day, the curfew didn't end.. Some of the men walked to the bridge and rode on ambulances and police cars to the other side, then walked to our house, took their women and walked to their houses or their relatives'.. The number of visitors went down to 7, this time men and women whose houses were too far.
Today, we only have 3 visitors, all too old to walk home, the curfew is still on.
I bet you've all forgotten grandpa has died by now, like I do most of the time now because of all that's going on..
Mosul is a mess now.. Many buildings are badly damaged as I saw on TV. Thank God everyone is safe.
Many many years ago, on grandpa and grandma's wedding, they mistakenly put mice poison instead of salt, and everyone was poisoned and transferred to the hospital..
Nobody forgot the wedding, or the incident of the wedding anyway.. and now no one's going to forget the funeral.
Grandpa was a great man, loved by everyone, very educated and dedicated to his work.. and now I know he's also full of surprises..
Say a prayer for him.. May his soul rest in peace.
We're still waiting for the curfew to stop..
Say a prayer for us..
and a very long prayer for Mosul.. and the lost peace..
