The news coming from both within and outside the country is not pleasant at all. I was having lunch on Friday with family members and somebody remarked that he had stopped watching television or reading the news.
“Seeing innocent people blown up in Iraq and Palestine, mothers being killed in America and their wombs robbed, assaults on the elderly are not the type of news diet that afford me peace of mind.”
“Here too the pictures of the innocent victims of the attacks on compounds and offices and especially the latest one on the US Consulate have really depressed me,” said another member at our family discussion.
“You media people always take delight in projecting the bizarre in order to shock us,” added the same gentleman.
“Well, sensationalism does sell,” I replied, “but it is the news that forces itself onto the front pages and unfortunately all is bad.”
However, as I thought and reflected more on our conversation, I began to review the last few years of my own life and wondered what it was all about. I remembered shops being left open and unattended while the employees flocked to prayers at the nearest mosque. I remember when common courtesy was the order of the day; when traffic would stop to let a pedestrian cross the street and when the young respected the old. We prided ourselves as a peaceful non-violent country. Today that has changed. These deviants with their distorted version of ideology have shattered our image and given us a bad name.
And while we discuss these incidents and these horrible people we forget that life in our country continues.
And this is because it is the basic nature of man to get along with life in the face of adversity.
As we ponder on the present situation let us not for a moment forget the overwhelming majority of people here who love their country and work quietly and ceaselessly for its image.
These are the “silent citizens”. Their names never appear in any newspaper nor do many people know about them.
There is the young captain in Saudia who between flights acts as a tennis scout and tries to discover tennis talent here. He goes from town to town encouraging young Saudis to play the game. He donates tennis racquets to many of these young boys without any fanfare or expectation of gratitude. Because of him several young boys have stopped smoking and are focusing on a brighter future.
Then there is the lady who uses her command of English to go and teach people who cannot afford a teacher improving their prospects so that one day they too can succeed and, like her, illuminate the lives of others with their knowledge. There is the young man who helps disturbed kids to get a grip on themselves. And then of course there are those who try hard to see that young people are committed to doing something with their lives.
I was impressed by the case of the young man who donated a kidney to a total stranger.
Then there are the many young men and women who call me to enquire whether they can do anything to help their fellow countrymen. Some are only 15 and 16 years old.
The love of one’s country lies within the heart. It is not the mere thumping of the chest or having voices echoing across.
These feelings lie deep within.
For every deviant or terrorist who makes it on the front pages of our newspapers, there are thousands of young women and men for whom the love of their country is close to the heart.
These people do not just sit idle, moaning and complaining. They do not aspire to seek fame or fortune. They want to get along with their lives lending a helping hand to their unprivileged brethren, showing compassion, exhibiting values and ideas that are entrenched within our Islamic ideology.
These people are the soul of our country and these are the unsung heroes to whom we offer our salute.
