this is your luck

maryam

In a list of the most commonly used statements in the Arabic language, this phrase would be in the top ten. The phrase’s frequent usage speaks so much about the personality of the society. I’ve never been one to believe the view of your life depending on your luck but in Arab culture it is more of an accepted fact than a belief.

Here so many events in one’s life are referred to as your luck. Marriage is commonly called “naseebak” or your luck. Your current job, status of living and even grades can be commonly referred to as your luck. It’s certainly not an atheistic point of view because your luck is from God.

I originally would be annoyed when anyone would use this phrase to refer to parts of his or her life because of the laziness that seemed to ooze from it. Accepting your luck seemed to be a lazy way of accepting circumstance and never fighting for something better.

I’ve grown a lot since those original thoughts.

I have a fighting spirit because I’ve seen things change purely from the hard work of everyday people. I know that I can work with the system to help others and myself. I know there is hope.

But what if you’ve never heard a good ending from a story dealing with the government? What if all your work is thrown back in your face by the system that was set up to protect you? How can you define citizenship if its definition exists in a world you’ve never seen? And what’s the point of marrying your true love if you end up losing your family, friends, home and all you own?

This is your luck not because you are too lazy to change it, but because it is happening to you. To you, your family, your country, your people. And there is no simple answer to why this is happening to us. Why the oppression, injustice, torture and despair? And why to me?

Because this is your luck

Humanity Rages like a tempest,
but i sigh in silence
for i know the storm must pass away
while a sigh goes to god.
-K. Gibran
A poet’s voice