Today is August 15th, the assumption of Mary (mother of Jesus).
It is also the National Acadian Day! As they say around here, “Bonne quinzou“.
Well, there is a joyful Acadian song that Bambi likes. It is entitled “Tous les acadiens et les acadiennes” (originally by Mr. Michel Fuguain). She would like to dedicate it, along with the “Ave Maris Stella”, to each Acadian or each citizen of Acadian ancestry, whether fully or partly, closely or remotely (including her own family members).
On this August 15, 2020, may the kind Mary comfort all those affected by the Beirut’s explosions.
Below, you can listen to a famous French song called “Beyrouth” (Beirut in French). Thanks to Mr. Enrico Macias for his immortal song! The video features beautiful pictures of Beirut (pre-explosions). Bambi posted this song earlier, on July 13, 2020. Today, she would like to dedicate it to Beirut. Christiane, thanks for re-sharing it last week. May your broken heart embrace healing, following your multiple losses. Much love to you!
Finally, on a lighter note, Bambi would like to wish her friend Fadi a Happy Birthday (despite the sorrow, from abroad)! Fadi is like a brother to Bambi. They grew up together. He used to volunteer with her in the Lebanese Red Cross and at the destroyed Saint George Hospital, near her parents’ place. Bambi and her family left Lebanon before him (just four months before the end of the civil war). Well, Fadi is a funny guy. During each of Bambi’s visits to Beirut and in Montreal, he used to tease her (especially on her birthdays), saying that she will always remain 17-year-old in his mind. Why? Because that was her age when she left Lebanon. Isn’t this funny, especially over three decades later?
Of course, what happened in Beirut last week is MUCH larger than civil war. However, once again, many people would want to try to immigrate now. This déjà vu reminds Bambi of the large wave of people who left Lebanon in the 1990s (perhaps also in 2006?). In her CEGEP only (college in Québec’s education system), she recalls how she bumped into several friends from Beirut whom she did not know that they survived like her. Of course, that was before the internet era, which makes Bambi a dinosaur, not just a deer!
Yes, the UAE became the third Arab country to normalize its relations with Israel (since Jordan in 1993-4, following Egypt om 1979). Perhaps this tells us the following: (1) Iran, with its large threat to the Arab world, “succeeded”, over the past years, in pushing the UAE in the arms of Israel. One must not also forget the simple saying of “the friend of my friend is my friend” (both countries are friends of the USA); and (2) Whether the media and the political analysts like it or not, Mr. Trump may have shown us yesterday that he is far from being an idiot, after all. To use the words of a Dear family from Toronto, “will Mr. Trump get a peace noble prize now“? This may seem like a joke, especially to all those who cannot stand Mr. Trump. However, in the bloody Middle East, any move toward peace is a miracle in itself. If only for the latter, Bambi will say bravo and thank you for giving us hope that peace is possible!
Bambi wrote the above whilst not being a fan of Mr. Trump (she is not fatally allergic to him neither… plus, who said that the alternative(s) are necessarily better?). Mind you, since she is not American, her opinion does not matter as she is not voting in the fall. Sadly, she just knows that the United States are internally as divided as the Lebanese politicians, now struggling to form a government. Each wants a piece of the cake (but the Lebanese desert has totally melted during the Beirut explosions…).
Once again, as per an earlier sarcastic post entitled “Mideast Peace counter-plan” (see further below), Bambi disliked a key part of Mr.Trump’s so-called peace plan for Jerusalem. She had wished it was the capital of both states (Israel & Palestine) and if, need be, put under international mandate for a while. She is not saying this from a religious point of view (she does not care much about religions despite having faith in her heart). She is saying so from a citizen point of view. She does not care much about ideology (whether religious or not!).
This being said, Bambi salutes any step that can take the Middle East toward peace and economic prosperity, not toward more hegemony or wars (by anyone, today it is by Iran. In the past and tomorrow, by someone else). Yesterday, something apparently very positive was achieved. Time will tell how this will unfold in the legalities and on the ground.
The UAE did their best interests (good for them), plus annexation of the West bank is now halted. What can we ask for more for God’s sake? Didn’t the Palestinians and the Israelis, and by extension some in Lebanon and the area (Hezbollah, Syria et al.) and the Middle East had enough of wars lately? Bambi is thinking of Iran, this elephant in the room whose own population suffers, like the Palestinians, the Lebanese, the Syrians, and the Iraqis. Bambi cannot stop thinking (even whilst sleeping) about the citizens of Beirut in the fragile Lebanon.
Yes, the tragedy of the Palestinians is still in your face. No one can deny it, especially when we come from the Middle East! Despite this, Bambi dislikes radicalism (i.e., Islamism or other). Bambi is with love and respect. Bambi is all for peace and prosperity… especially after watching the consequences of political negligence, corruption, and/or violence, as you can see in this incredibly moving CBC interview entitled “Parents of Canadian child [Alexandra or Lixou, featured in an earlier post] who died in Beirut blast hoped she would be ‘miracle of this big tragedy’” (great job by the sensitive journalist… and MUCH love to the amazing grieving and injured parents):
In all honesty, to come back to the peace deal, Bambi does not understand why the Palestinians are unhappy, considering this a stab in the back from the UAE. The latter is a separate and sovereign country, no? Perhaps because they are under the influence of radicals like in Lebanon, could it be?
In Bambi’s mind, both Palestine and Israel missed historic chances of signing peace treaties. In the case Israel, a clever peace deal was proposed by the Arab League at a meeting in Beirut (2002) a few years ago. Sadly, Israel missed the chance of making history then. For Palestine, Bambi cannot remember precisely but likely more than once.
Of course, we all have been dreaming for a resolution of the Palestinian tragedy for ages (what happened to the Palestinians is sad beyond words. It is somehow similar to the Acadian past tragedy. As a reminder, Lebanon has been dragged into the Palestinian tragedy during civil war. So, clearly, it paid a heavy price, resulting even in a 15-year Israeli occupation that ended 20 years ago). Furthermore, Syria which occupied Lebanon for 30 years prevented it from negotiating peace with Israel on a one to one basis.
Is Bambi fond of the Israeli occupation and/or abuses of Palestinians or continuous construction of colonies? Of course not! How could she be? Does this mean she supports radicalism then, in both Palestine and Lebanon (financed by Iran), to supposedly fight Israel, or at least to permanently hate it? Of course not. What about those fire bombs suspended from balloons sent to Israel and those strikes on Gaza? No, Bambi is against violence. Period. There are other more constructive ways to make peace and secure justice.
We can have the most beautiful peace treaties of the world everywhere but if people’s hearts are not filled with tolerance, love, and humanity, no peace deal will ever succeed. Alternatively, when there is love and tolerance, no need for peace treaties. Respect and love are antidotes to wars and fear. We must learn and commit to de-escalate and… eventually to trust. Yes, we can learn to re-trust and it goes both ways.
At the end of the day, peace is very simple in Bambi’ mind: All our children deserve to live in peace everywhere, across Canada as well as in Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United States, Russia, China, etc.
To conclude this post, enough blood and fire. Enough fear and grief. ENOUGH please. This is why, between violence and peace, Bambi clearly prefers peace. The latter is not an abstract choice. The latter is a personal choice rather. It is a mindset. It is a heart. It is an extended hand.
Peace is about building bridges, not destroying them. It is about knowing that our loved ones have the basic needs of the Maslow Pyramid: Physiological needs and safety/security needs. Check the red and orange parts of the pyramid below: How many Beirutis do not have these basic needs right now (e.g., 300, 000 homeless, 6000 injured, 170-78 dead, and some still missing)?! How and when could they move again to the top of the pyramid, where they have traditionally been, as “Paris of the Middle East“?! Even the worst country on the planet (likely not even Venezuela) is now ahead of Lebanon, in terms of quality of life!
“Vielen Dank FC Bayern”. Thank you Ms. Roula Douglas for re-tweeting and sharing.
Thank you Ralph (Mellehe). Bambi’ heart goes to your family 🙁 and all your friends.
Ralph was among those firefighters who rushed to the
Beirut port last Tuesday evening.
We can see his two pictures above, one as a firefighter and the other cheering for his favourite soccer team: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FC_Bayern_Munich (Bambi shares his passion for this team. So does her family. She was maybe of his age when she had the chance to meet her heroes celebrating a victory in the streets of München).
No one trusts the Lebanese leaders. How could they? How could we? They ruined their country, destroyed their capital, injured and killed innocent people like Ralph.
We want justice and healing for Beirut. We want peace for Lebanon (and the world). We want love. Enough is enough.
Once again, only an international investigation can uncover the truth behind Beirut port explosions!
“Lebanese youth express their anger less than a week after the explosions in Beirut. After that, it’s either death or we leave the country…”
Bambi would like to thank Ms. Roula Douglas for sharing this video.
Here is a quick translation of their own words expressed in French:
“We are being held hostage in our own country. We can’t get our money out. We don’t have a job. I am not feeling well and I am angry.
What has changed since Wednesday? Why protest now? Because it’s our last breath. After that, it’s either death or we leave the country. And I am not ready to leave the country.
And even after everything we’ve been through, they oppressed us more. They shot us. What does not work is that you have the same exact people who are in power for over 30 years.
They completely destroyed Lebanon. They have corrupted any organization. All sectors. All Lebanese sectors have been corrupted.
We want our justice, we want our freedom. We want our stolen money. We want peace.
Our requests are very simple: The departure of all this political class, all those political leaders, whether at the level of the Assembly/Parliament or at the level of the government.
Not only did they steal our money. Over US$100 billion has been stolen. Because we are not a bankrupt country. We are a country that has been completely robbed.
This is how they left their people, this is how the Lebanese people live today, without electricity, without water, without food. And there are plenty of people who don’t even have a home anymore. It is justice that we want. it is justice that we will have.
They’re the intruders, not us. They are the minority but unfortunately they are armed to the teeth… and we have our bodies, that’s all. Our generation will change everything. Our generation will recreate this country. Our generation will build this country.“
This is Bambi’s first post after Beirut sea port explosions, which is not about her birth city’s surrealistic tragedy. Indeed, this post is about her beloved country, Canada.
Make no mistake please, this does not mean that her heart stopped being consumed by Beirut’s tragedy and her loved ones’ sufferings or shared grief. She just took a break from her own sorrow, so to speak. She was also eager to return to a certain normality, at least in the variety of the posts’ topics. By no means, she meant to be disrespectful or insensitive in these moments of grief. Plus, the post is still related to Lebanon and lessons learned from it.
Stated differently, because Bambi deeply cares for Lebanon, she does not want Canada (and, by extension, every democratic country) not to learn, at least, one lesson from Beirut:
With much clientelism, without any accountability, with unbalanced power of one entity over the others, with slogans or beautiful yet empty words, with increased identity politics, and without true patriotism of its leaders, any country (large or small) risks turning into Lebanon one day, of course not to that extreme. This can happen despite the best intentions of political leaders and the country’s stability.
So, what could be an antidote to “Lebanonization” of respectable countries like Canada? In Bambi’s mind, it is democratic accountability (to the people).
Bearing this in mind, like all Canadians, Bambi learned today that Mr. Blanchet [leader of the Bloc Québécois (BQ)] is again asking for the resignation of Mr. Justin Trudeau and Mr. Bill Morneau… as well as Ms. Katie Telford (Chief of Staff to PM Trudeau):
To use Mr. Blanchet’s own words quickly translated from his own Twitter account: “If we have to go to an election because it’s not as bad as leaving them there, there are possible distancing measures. The a contrario reasoning would mean that as long as there is a pandemic, we live in dictatorship.”
As a reminder, the WE Charity saga is Mr. Trudeau’s third scandal, neither the first nor the second. The New democratic Party (NDP) does not seem to be in line with the Bloc Québécois (BQ) with regard to such request. This is fascinating yet not surprising, given that elections may not be to their advantage, from a financial point of view. Who knows? Despite spicy critics concerning the WE scandal, they may be perhaps resorting to political flirt with the Liberal Party of Canada (Trudeau’s government)? Bambi is saying all this as a non-expert citizen.
Talking about finances, if Bambi recalls well, the BQ may be the only federal party that chose not to financially benefit from the covid-19 pandemic (trough a certain program of salary support). This tells you something interesting: The BQ may be sovereignist, yes. However, it has demonstrated that it is not only decent, authentically socialist, and ecological (like Québeckers in general). Most importantly here, it is also ironically working for Canada! Do you see the irony :)?!
Bambi is saying the above, even if she obviously cannot vote for the BQ (meant for Québec residents only). This does not prevent her from thanking Mr. Blanchet for holding our leaders accountable, regardless of the outcome. Same for Mr. Pierre Poilievre, Conservative Shadow Minister for Finance, et al.
Today, it is about the Liberals. Tomorrow, it will be about another party in power. No one is immune to temptation or… simply to a sense of entitlement. Of course, this despite all the best intentions of the world and despite the challenges of governing during a pandemic. It is accountability to Canadians that matters, regardless of the politician’s name or party in question.
As Canadian citizens, how many scandals should we tolerate or… excuse? Some would say: oh we are in a pandemic, give us a break. Others may think: The federal government supported us or fed us during the pandemic. True but, of course, there is a price to this generosity: increased future public debt. Although this urgent support was much needed and is much appreciated, our government was already overspending prior to the covid-19 pandemic. We did not even have a budget lately, unless Bambi missed it.
Bambi feels like adding the following: Even if our current federal government is helping her birth country (God knows how much Bambi is grateful!), and even if she voted for the Liberals most of her life (not the last time :)), she still thinks that our top political leaders should be held accountable. This even if they may have been clever in their roles or capacity. Thanks for their service, not for the conflicts of interest.
Of course, as Mr. Blanchet asked from day 1 of the WE Charity scandal, Elections Canada should get ready to adjust its operations during the pandemic. He is right. Even without an election soon, this preparation may be needed in the future (in case of other pandemics).
Before concluding this post, did the WE charity return the received money after the contract was cancelled? Perhaps Bambi missed this piece of information in the middle of the Lebanese saga.
OK, time to be sarcastic now. The title of this post refers to a Banana Republic. Thankfully Canada has ethical mechanisms in place to keep it functioning as a democratic country. Let’s make sure we will keep using those mechanisms as we are doing now (bravo), of course with real independence and transparency.
At the end of the day, governments come and go but countries stay. This can work for Canada. However, sadly, in the case of Lebanon (tiny, bankrupt, geopolitically vulnerable, and now with the covid-19 crisis like the rest of the world), this country is holding on BECAUSE of its amazing people, first and foremost (along with the much needed international support), and DESPITE its government(s).
Last but not least, related to the above point, in one of the many news documentaries on Lebanon she watched yesterday, Bambi recalls seeing a young woman from Beirut who was helping her homeless fellow citizens (post-explosion). She told the international reporter interviewing her whilst packing food: “You knows, there is no government in Lebanon… We are the government“. Isn’t this fascinating, to say the least?
It is incredible how we can be so far and yet so close. Indeed, there are no words to describe the surrealistic Beirut tragedy of last Tuesday.
This being said, as you can see further below, “Sky News has obtained exclusive CCTV footage from inside St George Hospital in Beirut, from when the deadly blast hit“.
When you watch this fascinating video, you realize that it is a miracle that MOST of the staff, patients, visitors are still alive (thankfully, this includes Bambi’s Dear cousins who work there). This being said, like everyone, she is heart-broken for the 17 persons who lost their lives (including 4 nurses as well as patients and family members). Some of the injured people are in critical conditions, one must not forget. May they all heal.
Yet, despite this tragedy, all the (300) hospital patients were evacuated safely in the darkness (loss of power) and in the middle of the incredible damage. How did they do all this in just 8 minutes?! What an incredible story of courage and efficacy!
There are many inspiring stories of resilience coming out of Beirut. One of them involves her own sister Rania whose spouse and daughter got injured. Sadly, MANY other citizens were not fortunate to survive…
It is indeed deeply sad to watch pictures of the victims or read their stories. Roula, (sister) and Gladson (brother-in-law) are at funeral services literally every day since that awful last Tuesday. To come back to Rania, she has been incredibly courageous. Indeed, her spouse, our Dear Rabih, got badly injured (he is alive, thank goodness, and his eye is saved). Same for their own 18-year-old daughter, Stéphanie. Also, another piece of good news. Despite her injury in the back, she is/will be fine. Incredible that they happened to be both in the worst neighbourhoods of Beirut to be in at the moment of the blast (even closer to the port).
The chaos Rania described to Bambi about the hospitals she visited to try to search for her spouse is beyond imagination. It is like in those horror movies. One hospital she visited (Hôtel Dieu, if Bambi recalls the name) received over 1000 patients at once! Rania searched all their faces looking for her husband. How did she manage to drive in the chaos? At one point, she had to leave her car somewhere and just walk as fast as she could to reach another hospital. She was surrounded by bloody and dazed people who were “walking like zombies“, to use her own words.
One must say that Rabih’s first thought was to walk, also bloody injured, to the Saint George Hospital. Of course, at that time, he had no clue that it was being evacuated. Someone saw him (a kind friend) and put him in his car. He drove him to the hospital mentioned above. Then to a third one. Same for Bambi’s friend, Maya (her hero who is healing, day by day!). She also had to go to four different hospitals and she lives just by the Saint George hospital too, facing the sea port. Both of them bled a lot.
At the exact same time and in a close area, Rabih and Rania’s own daughter (Bambi’s niece) was being taken care of by another good Samaritan (the father of a school friend, it turned out). Thanks to him, she got the needed stitches on her back. Bambi thanks God for having protected her whilst being sad beyond words for all the other unlucky victims (close to 200) and the 6000+ injured citizens, without mentioning the 300, 000 homeless families and the massive destruction.
Among the victims, Bambi just watched a CNN news documentary about Ahmed, a man who escaped the horror of the Syrian war. Tragically, he lost his spouse, two daughters, and the third one is between life and death at the American University of Beirut‘s healthcare centre. Needless to add that he is homeless too. Bambi’s heart goes to you Ahmed!
This being said, to come back to the destroyed Saint George hospital, Bambi was particularly moved to recognize in this video, Dr. Georges Juvelikian. The latter is the pulmonary specialist/Professor who discovered her dad’s lung cancer a few years ago. He is not just known for his medical expertise but also for his humanity. During one of her visits to Beirut, Bambi recalls how she was once walking with her dad by this hospital (corner of her parents’ place). They bumped into a man who seemed so happy to see her dad. He even gave him a hug. Bambi was curious. She asked her dad about this kind man. Her dad told her whom he is. He said: “this is the clever doctor who discovered my cancer”! He even added that this highly competent physician is one of the most humble people he has ever met. From time to time, he drops by the church (Saint George) of Bambi’s parents (near the hospital). He even kindly and discretely serve during the service.
As Dr. Juvelikian said, the Saint George hospital has never closed, even during wars. May the doors of this outstanding teaching-hospital re-open sooner than we think (as realistically possible). May this historic trauma be digested, slowly but surely, by all those affected. May a new Lebanon finally see the light, after having hit its DEEPEST low in its history…. Yes, from one crisis to the other, from one tragedy to the other, Beirut explosion is the paroxysm of this country’s horrors.
To conclude this post, Lebanon has much talent. It is where the East meets the West. It is culturally rich. It is meant to live and just enjoy love. It is a shame to let its ruling mafia-like thugs destroy it.
Yes, sadly the Phoenix has been badly injured but it MUST rise from its ashes, today more than ever!
Sophia was just 4-day-old on August 4, 2020, when the Beirut port explosion took place. She is the youngest injured citizen, as you can see in the moving picture at the end of this post.
Can you imagine the ordeal of Sophia’s mom? She was just in her 4th day postpartum when the nightmare happened. This is a time when new mothers need support, not catastrophes.
Can you imagine the pain/fear of Sophia’s dad?
What about her relatives who just celebrated her birth? Now they are worried about her life.
Why should Lebanon’s infants and children still have to go through injuries caused by adults?
Why should these adults once again destroy their beautiful capital?
Why should Beirutis keep suffering from one generation to the other? They went through hell and lost everything in less than 15 seconds… not even 15 years like during civil war.
Even Sisyphus cannot take it anymore, especially without hope for a (real!) change.
We heard today of more resignations of MPs and Ministers (Environment, Justice, Information, etc.). It seems that even the relatively new PM resigned. Will all this make any difference in reality? Hopefully, even if everyone knows who is in charge behind the scenes and… “ALL of them means all of them” (slogan of the people’s revolt against systemic corruption).
Of course, time will tell. However, Bambi is somehow skeptical… Yet, she wants to keep dreaming of a healthy change of the political system, true democracy, peace, prosperity…. and of love!
What’s next for Lebanon? The days ahead may be critical, unless the status quo remains the strongest, despite people’s amazing efforts to challenge it since October 17, 2019.
Bambi is praying for you baby Sophia… (picture shared by journalist Roula Douglas)
First, the criminality… here is just one example of all the corrupt acts taking place in Lebanon for over 30 years without any accountability.
Second, here is a message of life and love in the middle of DEEP sorrow. In the tweet below by journalist Roula Douglas, you can see the father of the little Alexandra (in one of Bambi’s earlier posts). He talked about how criminals wanted to kill love, which will keep prevailing in his family despite the tragedy. He said: “Lixou [his 3-year-old daughter killed in the explosion] is not a *martyr*, she is rather a victim”. Bambi had the exact reaction a couple of days ago, telling herself: Enough of this (stupid) label. People did not chose to die. All they wanted to do was to live. So, stop calling them martyrs… Martyrs of what and of/for whom? Bless Alexandra’s (“Lixou”) dad for saying that “his family’s love will keep going, even if the Lebanese leaders’ criminality was against love“. Bambi can only imagine one drop of the pain of “Lixou’s” mom and dad. She and her spouse had three recurrent miscarriages and their hearts still ache… so imagine when your 3-year-old daughter is injured, suffers for days, and dies!
Finally, to end this post with stories of hope. First, here is a video shared by Mr. Antoine Azar (Bambi’s amazing dad!). It shows the priest of his Saint George church at the moment of the explosion. Thank Goodness the priest’s spouse was just lightly injured and they both survived:
In the same spirit but with a message of hope, further below you can watch a BBC News story/interview about Saint Dimitrios church in Beirut. Before this, you can see a picture that Bambi took of this church during her last trip to Lebanon on December, 2019. It is less than 1-2 minutes away, walking distance, from her parents’ place. It is in this magnificent church that all her ancestors are buried.
Saint Dimitrios Church in Beirut. A picture taken by Bambi in December, 2019
Saint Dimitrios Church in Beirut. A picture taken by Bambi in December, 2018. She walked for 1-2 minutes and her childhood friend Nayla walked for 1-2 minutes and they met in that church. What a beautiful place to meet loved ones. Bambi is so sorry for all the destruction after the explosion (August 4, 2020) :(. She is grateful that the priest and his children as well as the church’s “altar” were intact.
Below, you can see a short video taken by Bambi in December, 2018:
Despite the UNBELIEVABLE deep sorrow, Bambi is fortunate because her immediate and extended family members in Beirut are not having their funeral services in this church right now (contrary to many others :(). All this despite their injuries, damaged houses, workplaces, healthcare centres, and shared grief.
In the middle of all this suffering, as the priest of Saint Dimitrios church said, one must find hope. Indeed, this is the moving BBC News story mentioned above. It is about a man (the priest) searching for hope…
Finally, to those providing hope to families awaiting to find their missing loved ones, thank you whether you are from Lebanon, France, Germany, the Netherlands, England, the USA, etc. To all those helping locally and internationally, including Canada. THANK you. To those who are thanking the rescue teams with drinks and foods (Mary, I am thinking of you), thanks too. Bambi would like to thank every fellow Canadian citizen donating a penny. This is appreciated in any time, imagine during a pandemic. Bambi knows that money does not grow on trees. Too bad that the Lebanese authorities do not have respect for not only their own population but also for all the generous populations of the world. Donations from other governments come from taxpayers, Bambi feels like screaming at them! Enough criminal carelessness and corruption. Enough violence, whether accidental or not. Enough wars. ENOUGH!
A moving picture taken from an unknown source (French media? l’Orient Le Jour?). MERCI Monsieur!
