“Once in a while it really hits people that they don’t have to experience the world in the way they have been told to.” - Alan Keightley via SwissMiss
One of the first things Kurds ask when I meet them is "Is this your first time here? What do you think?". Of course I tell them it's amazing here, because... well, it's freaking amazing here.
The next thing they do is thank me for coming. Thank me. They say things like "You see, it's not like people think. It's safe. We're not like people think." And it's completely true.
It's remarkable to be in a place where a people are forging a new way, slowly rebuilding what others tried their best to exterminate. They were told for decades that they had no worth, not even worthy of life. But here they are, they ones who survived, building a nation.
There is still a long way to go, in so many ways. Particularly for women, who lack many basic freedoms. But things are changing here. They're slowly finding a new way to experience the world.
If an oppressed nation can make a way forward, I can't imagine why any of us can't do the same.
2 comments:
insightful musings on your experience
seeing the photo though, I can't help but wonder, what's with the plastic on the ceiling...?
lol... Kel, they are seriously hardcore about their vehicles here. Clean, clean, clean! It's not uncommon for taxis to have the interiors covered in plastic, but this was over the top. Every surface was covered in plastic, and even the signal arms on the steering column were covered in little plastic bags.
If they ever saw the interior of my car, they would be suitably horrified!!
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