To borrow the descriptive words of Bambi’s sister Ms. Roula Douglas, “this explosion feltlike the 15 years of civil war condensed in a few seconds“.
The tragic irony is that in the covid-19 pandemic, all these people affected, like you and Bambi, were supposed to be safe in their “sheltered homes”. You can imagine the suffering of each affected family (grief, injuries, and destroyed home, hospital, business or restaurant/café/pub, etc.). It is as if all the shelters of wars have been destroyed all at once (Bambi’s aunt died in a shelter. The latter is supposed to be the safest place in armed conflicts).
On the contrary, some parents lost their young ones. Other parents died in front of their kids’ eyes in their homes or in their cars. Some were injured. Other traumatized. Bambi’s heart goes to everyone, especially to all her relatives including cousins who lost many colleagues (especially thinking of you Christiane), friends who lost relatives (Michel and your surviving kids :(, all the Azars in Montreal, Rania and Rabih, Nayla, Bambi shares your pain).
For all of you and for those amazing angels of young people coming together to help Beirut citizens (e.g., cleaning streets from glasses, offering to help in homes and stores, etc.), Bambi signed this petition, circulated by Journalist Roula Azar-Douglas. It asks the UN Security Council to Support Lebanon with an independent and transparent investigation. She invites you to do so, if you wish: http://chng.it/tynzcPmN
See below the video of those youth who came to help Bambi’s dad in his store. They warmed his heart and brought tears to his eyes! Bless their hearts! As Ms. Roula Douglas wrote on her social media: “These young men came from the West part of the capital, the “other region” as it was called during civil war. They volunteered to help clean the debris and help the citizens“.
Alexandra Najjar, 3-year-old died on August 7, 2020 (four days after the explosion)
Sahar Fares, 24-year-oldSaying good-bye to her brother….A picture taken from l’Orient Le JourAu revoir Nicole Majid Hélou…For those who could have been killed! Bambi thanks her parents for the picture
For those who survived… Bambi loves you mom and dad (she can see your Canadian and Lebanese flags in this picture…)
Store of Bambi’s dad before the explosion. This picture was taken by Bambi herself during her last trip in December, 2019Store post-explosionThe inside of the store post-explosion with damages from glasses and the false ceilingAnother picture of the store post-explosionMore glasses…More debris and damage to products
These numbers could dramatically rise with the rescue outcomes. Despite this, there was a happy story yesterday. They found a missing man alive in the sea (injured yet alive, after 30 hours!).
Anyhow before starting this post, here is a picture of France’s President Macron being hugged in Beirut by a youth…
Thank you France, Canada, and all the world… especially in the middle of a pandemic affecting everyone’s economy (Bambi cannot name all the countries…), for standing up with the Lebanese people! Bambi would also take this opportunity to thank ALL those who showed their solidarity and care for her family. She is speechless. Thank you for the calls, SMS, emails, prayers, love, and compassion.
A youth hugging Mr. Macron in Beirut (August 6, 2020). This picture was taken from CNN
This being said, here is the story of life and death…
First, at the same time of the SURREALISTIC twin explosions, a newborn (baby Georges!) came to life, as per the BBC video below. You can see him in the arms of his dad. Their picture was taken by his mother, Ms. Christelle (or Emanuelle) Sawaya. “Mabrouk” (= Congratulations) to this courageous young family! The video was taped by his dad.
Welcome Baby George (born in Beirut on August 4, 2020)! This picture was taken by his mother and this is his dad.
That was the beautiful part of the story (life).
Sadly, at the exact same time at the same devastated Saint GeorgeHospital, death was awaiting 15 people who lost their lives on the spot (4 nurses and 11 patients. These figures could be higher today, perhaps 20 in total). You can see a sad video of the destruction of the hospital further below (it is sad to watch, you have been warned).
Saying good-bye to her sister… A picture taken by Mr. Mahmoud Zayyat for the Associated France Press.
The Saint George Hospital (Saint George is known as the protector of Beirut) was like the second home of Bambi, so to speak, during civil war. At one point, as a volunteer in the ER, morgue, dialysis, she slept there for weeks (she was stuck due to heavy combats and shelling) , even if running home would have taken her a few seconds… OK perhaps a full minute to catch her breath. She used to also jump there (between rounds of shelling) to bring water home (a large container) or… simply to take a shower (once after 18 days in a row!). Less dramatically, this is where all her family came to the world, baby after baby (including herself). This is where her parents usually get their medical care. Even from far away, she has always felt proud of the great news of excellence of this teaching hospital (a living monument for medicine and science in Beirut). This hospital is also the daily workplace of at least 5 or 6 of her cousins. Thank God, they are all safe and sound (despite one’s minor injury at home).
Bambi cried like baby George when she saw the video below (destruction beyond imagination… of course, we can also see traces of blood, reminding us of those who lost their lives or got injured). Remember, baby George saw the light at the same time the lights went off at this heavily damaged hospital. A few seconds/minutes after, the whole place was in a state of evacuation. This is the worst code that health centres can have. Imagine having to evacuate all the patients to other hospitals (some may have been on machines or under surgery, etc.). The latter were also badly damaged (one not too far) or literally overwhelmed. Yet, the medical team kept providing care to injured people in its parking lot. WOW!
Next to this hospital, there is a beautiful church (Saint George), along with its senior residence. It seems that this relatively recently renovated byzantine church got damaged too (Greek nuns came to paint its magnificent icons on the ceiling and on the walls. Same for other churches further away, which were also recently painted by those same talented senior nuns (Byzantine art is their specialty; Bambi had the chance to witness their devoted work when visiting Beirut once). Bambi’s heart goes to her cousin Elham and her spouse (priest) and to her parents. Their church means so much to them…
Most importantly, Bambi’s heart goes to those who lost loved ones, those under the rubble, injured, homeless (300, 000+!) or without cars. To all those who lost their (OUR!) beautiful Beirut!!! Bambi is with you in spirit. She is upset and sad beyond words… Enough of corruption, incompetence, and criminality!
Bambi’s parents miraculously survived, along with Michka! What a blessing, given the level of damage in their apartment (+ her dad’s store)! In the middle of her tears looking at pictures, she could not help not to smile to two details: their Canadian flag (next to the Lebanese flag) remained untouched, despite the destruction on the balcony and in the apartment. They also have a painting of the Swan pond of Sackville (NB)’s Mount Allison University in their dining room. Contrary to the rest, it was not destroyed/broken.
Bambi’s parents could have been easily among those 300 dead people. Thank Goodness they were not present in their destroyed room at the time! Somehow they survived and we are grateful to God (they also could have been without a roof too). Bambi feels sad that they have to deal with all this. Them and all the relatives and friends of their age (the financial crisis and the pandemic were more than enough).
Last but not least, it is heart-breaking that MANY kids have been injured and are surely traumatized, like their parents. Indeed, Bambi’s sister (whose spouse and daughter got injured :() shared moving stories of people’s cry for help (many were carrying their injured kids covered with blood). Bambi’s heart goes to you Rania who lost some friends :(. Bambi thanks God once again that Rabih survived… May he heal smoothly. Same for Stéphanie (“habibi”!)!
To conclude this post, may baby George, and all Lebanon’s children, grow, thrive, and see better days!
Like many of your loved ones abroad, Bambi is joining her prayer for your prompt recovery Maya (+ your mom’s and aunt’s recovery too). We are all with you across the miles. We love you!
Here is a famous and joyful French song to you from Bambi. It is about friendship. Following it, you can read your cousin Carla’s message. Bambi chose this song because both you and Carla are her DEAREST friends in Beirut and Montreal. Plus, your mother Maya and Bambi’s mom have been friends since childhood.
Although we are VERY far away, the distance between the hearts matters more than any mere geographical distance. Well, Bambi did not need a pandemic to understand this life reality. She has been experiencing it for over 30 years now.
Talking about hearts, you can guess that ours are broken for Lebanon, to use Carla’s clever words. As she wrote today, “my heart is broken in 10,452 pieces“. Why that many little pieces? Well, as you know, it is because it is the area of Lebanon’s in km2. (to put things into perspective, this total area corresponds to less than twice the size of the province of PEI. It is almost 150 times smaller than the province of Québec).
When she sees the SURREALISTIC images from Beirut, Bambi realizes how lucky she is to be able to share a song with you :). Hang on Maya… may your recovery be the smoothest possible!
A video taken from The Guardian showing a bride at the moment of the explosion… A picture by Mr. Bilal Jawish at the Saint George Hospital, Beirut, Lebanon. This nurse is carrying 3 newborns whilst her Saint Georges hospital (near where Bambi’s parents live) lost its 8th floor (blown away!) Sadly, 15 people died on the spot (11 patients and 4 nurses). A picture taken from An NaharA picture taken from l’Orient Le JourA picture taken by An Nahar. These are the headquarters of this newspaper.A picture taken from An Nahar A picture re-tweeted by journalist Roula Azar-Douglas. These are heroes. Last picture of them together before their last mission when they rushed to extinguish the fire of the first of the two dramatic explosions. May they rest in peace… A picture by Mr. Alex Rowell, Editor, Al Joumhouria A picture by Mr. Patrick Baz for the Associated France Press A picture by Mr. Alex Rowell, Editor, Al Joumhouria
Her name is Zeinab Haydar. She served her patients until her last breath… at age 47.
In the Al Arabiya link below, we can see a moving picture of her colleagues waiting on the street “in a moment of farewell to Zainab Haider at Rafik Hariri University Hospital in Beirut“.
May your memory be eternal Zeinab. May your family find the strength to go through their tough grief journey.
It seems that you are the first nurse to die from covid-19… after having cared for so many patients, helping them in healing.
Last week, Lebanon lost an emergency physician.
Earlier, Lebanon also lost several physicians among its diaspora (e.g., Italy, France, Brazil, etc.).
If she may, Bambi would like to offer you a song, as a tribute. She discovered it yesterday whilst listening to her internet Lebanese radio from Los Angeles.
The song is called “Life is beautiful”. It is a joint venture between singers from Lebanon and singers from abroad (some from Canada!). They sing in several languages: Arabic (Ms. Karol Sakr composed the music and Mr. Roger Dahrieh the lyrics), French (a Canadian young woman of Lebanese origins), English, Spanish, Italian, and German (a young man in Germany who happens to be Lebanese).
They did so to highlight Emancipation Day, which commemorates the Abolition of Slavery Act. The latter saw the light as
a law on August 1, 1834.
These young people could have been your kids or Bambi’s
own.
They were young. They seemed passionate.
They carried signs of Black Lives Matter, as you can see in the pictures of the CP24 link above.
They found a new cause to walk for, even in the middle
of a pandemic and the risk of transmission of the coronavirus.
Until now, this story seems noble and human, up until we learn that they were calling for the abolition of the prison system.
Indeed, it seems that their walk was literally called “A March for Prison Abolition”.
Does that make any sense? Not to Bambi for sure and she is ALL for freedom.
So, if we follow their logic: They want NO police (their initial demand, repeated again whilst marching) AND NO prisons.
Can you imagine life without neither police services nor prisons :)?
Even in an ideal beautiful imaginary world, there would be someone to break the law or to put others at risk.
Life is not rosy all the time.
Life is not all black and white, so to speak, even if the latter vision fits how these people seem to see the world. A vision that is not only unrealistic but also dangerous.
The demand of these people is disconnected from the reality, to say the least.
As soon as the pandemic will be behind us, Bambi would like to offer them all a world trip to tour dictatorships around the world :). Perhaps their call to abolish prison systems where torture is omnipresent would have more utility there.
Of course, this does not mean we do not have the responsibility to keep improving our justice and prison systems (e.g., fair to all, respectful of human dignity, etc.). Bravo for them to be sensitive to this.
So, to conclude this post, back to our title: Can unwise extremism take a country like Canada straight to hell in the long term? Bambi will let you reach your own conclusion… As far she is concerned, she cannot help not to think of stories/memories of gratuitous violence, acts of terrorism, anarchy, civil unrest/war.
We are blessed to live in a normal and functional country with respectable systems.
Is it perfect? Of course not.
Could it be improved? Yes, for sure!
Should we throw the baby with the bathwater then? Why would we do so? And what would be the alternative?
How about if we simply use our critical sense before endorsing absurd demands and slogans?
“I took part in the government to work for
one boss, Lebanon,” Hitti, a former Arab League diplomat, said in a statement.
“I found multiple bosses and conflicting interests in my country, and if they
don’t come together for the interest of the Lebanese people and save it, the
boat will sink.”
Dr. Nassif Hitti is a highly respected Lebanese diplomat
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nassif_Hitti).
His resignation in these “historical moments” is highly significant.
The LAF is historically respected by all citizens. It
is considered as the red line of national security.
OK, the soldiers of the Dear LAF are not eating meat anymore because of the tough economic times.
OK, the Hizbullah is a MUCH stronger militia force than the LAF.
OK, the LAF had its sad times during civil war when it got divided, more than once.
However, despite all the above, the LAF survived and somehow managed to keep its unity and respect by all. Bravo to all the soldiers serving their country and assisting citizens!
Bravo to an army that has removed its mandatory service a few years after civil war. This is not that common in the Middle East.
An army that is as diverse as Lebanon… and yet united, as mentioned above.
Now, back to the story of censorship that happened at yesterday’s virtual concert.
The latter was meant to celebrate the LAF’s 75 years of existence (occurring on Saturday, August 1st, 2020). Due to the pandemic, there was neither a parade nor a performance. However, a certain NGO organized a virtual concert to honour the LAF. This so-called NGO is ironically called “Lebanese and proud”…. well, proud except of the one censored sentence, as you can see below. Proud BUT not of its revolution against the mafia-like government.
Bambi has posted about the song for Beirut that was the object of the stupid censorship in a few of its most powerful lyrics (of a famous poem): the sentence “For revolution is born from the womb of misery”got replaced by… “lalalalala” (you can see this earlier post at very end of this one).
Should we laugh or cry about this stupidity?
Do they really think that the Lebanese people are that stupid (mmm, maybe *bébé lalala*, as they say in Québec… Hence their lalalalala melody :))?
VERY seriously now, does this make any sense?
How can anyone think that not reminding the people of Lebanon that their revolution (against the corrupt political elite) was born from the womb of their CRYING misery is not necessary?
How can anyone think that just because the truth is silenced that it will stop existing all of a sudden?
Below, you can see a recent statement by the MTV, which covered the event and remember further below Bambi’s earlier post with a link to the beautiful song:
“MTV issues statement on the event that took place on Army Day”
“Following the reactions and comments that were made regarding the
replacement of a phrase from a song that includes a reference to the
“revolution”, which happened during the live coverage of
“Kermelak Ya Watan” concert on Army Day, MTV has decided to confirm
the following:
The TV station, which assumed the live coverage of the protests and never
hesitated to spread the people’s voice as they protested against the political
class, is against all forms of suppression of the freedom of speech and has
paid, and still is paying, a hefty price for it.
MTV was in charge of the productive aspect of the above-mentioned
concert, which includes filming and directing. In addition to other related tasks,
such as the reports and the content of the presentation, which Tony Baroud was
in charge of, without interfering with the technical aspects of the artistic
and musical program, and the selection of songs. Therefore, the TV station had
nothing to do with the changes that were made for one of the songs.
The TV station would like to stress that the Lebanese Army Day is a national and inclusive occasion, and the concert was held yesterday to express this unity, which is the result of the joint work and the distribution of roles between the army, the organizers and MTV, in addition to the valuable contribution of the artists, the orchestra and the choir.”
In Arabic, they say: “The causes of death are numerous,
but death remains the same”.
There is surely something ironic that your dad did not die because of the coronavirus or of an armed conflict or a revolution.
Bambi hopes that this fatal pedestrian-car accident happened too fast for your dad to suffer.
She just lit a candle for him/you: May he rest in
peace. May you find comfort with each other, along with inner peace… Bless you
for your care and visits to see him.
Safe travels please… Be well. Be strong Paul, Paula,
Valérie, and Sandra.
Too bad there is a pandemic in life… Even deer cannot jump neither to Montreal nor to Beirut to be by your side. All they can do is to share their love across the miles!
