Lands of magical places
with magical names: Kandahar,Isfahan, Casablanca,
Palmyra, Istambul, Babylon.
I walked the streets of
Damascus, even the famous “Via Recta”, the “street known as straight” where
Paul once walked before me.
I visited the bazaars
of Bahrain and the Mysterious Casbah. I sailed on the Nile and walked
the banks
of the purifying Jordan, the Tigris, the Euphrates, the Red Sea
and the Dead Sea.
I saw the ruins of the
great Ba’albek and was awed
by the majesty of Persepolis, home to the great
Darius and forever linked to Alexander the Great.
I sat under the Cedars
of Lebanon, and
climbed the mountains of the ancient prophets.
I saw the splendor of
Shiraz, city of flowers
and nightingales, and visited the magnificent
Jomeh
Mosque in Isfahan.
I marveled at the hanging
gardens of Babylon
and the rose red city of Petra. I sat in wonder
at the
foot of the great Pyramids, and the
inscrutable Sphinx. I wandered
through the
Valley of Queens and the Valley of Kings,
and dreamed of Luxor
and Karnal.
I saw the sun rise in
glory in Kuwait, and set in
equal glory
in Saudi.
I walked the bazaars in
Teheran, and the
tortuous cobbles
of Old Jerusalem. I pondered
the
mysteries of life in cool
gardens.
I ate with Bedouin in
the desert, and drank sweet coffee inIstambul. I was offered
food with subtle spices that I hadnever heard of, but will
never forget.
In the evenings I danced
the dabke with your
women and
listened to the endless
tales of your
men. I laughed at the
antics of Mullah Nasr
Din,
and was mesmerized by the 1001stories of Scheherezade.
I was overcome by the
poetry of the great Hafez
and thefatalistic beauty of
Omar Khayyam; by the never-ending
soul searching of the
Sufi.
I played with your children
when the sun came up,
and
listened to your music
when the moon rose.
I learned your language,
and grew a new Soul.
And in all that time,
with your grace and
overwhelming
hospitality, you never,
not even once, called me "Infidel".
Until now.
To those of you, Osama
bin Laden, Saddam
Hussein, Al Qaeda, Taliban, Islamic Jihad,
Hezbollah,
Hamas, who now call me "Infidel",
I tell you:-
that God willing, one
day I will walk your lands again, and I will look for the wonders YOU have
built.
The hospitals, to care
for man’s body, and
the schools to stimulate his mind.
The roads so he can travel,
and the beautiful
gardens where he can rest when weary.
And the magnificent mosques,
to the greater
glory of Allah.
But I fear I shall look
in vain.
I fear that in your wake
I will find only
destruction and
desolation as a reminder
that you once passed this way.
And while great men are
forever remembered
for their works, that desolation will be your
only epitaph.
You have taken what once
was the Cradle of Civilisation, and made of it a funeral casket.
Perhaps your own.
Perhaps, from your miserable
cave in the
afterworld, if you
listen very carefully,
you will once again hear the tales of
your men in the coffee
shops, the singing of your women as
they go about their business,
and the joyous laughter of your children as they play.
And that laughter will
ring in your ears,
and mock you, for
all eternity.
