Wednesday, August 05, 2009

Phobia

Iraqi's phobias

Many examples I watched in the people around me, people who have phobia from Bullets, explusions and bomb cars, People having phobia from Iraq for a major extent.

Welcome, to the country of fears:

*Two women walking around (me and my mother) accompanied with a man (my uncle in law) who is carrying a little box, they passed thought one of the National Guard (حرس وطني).

The Guard: where are you going to localize this bomb??

My uncle:”Some where nears your place (slightly smiling)!!”My uncle put a little boxes one after another on the ground where I was standing near. I and my mother were looking for a taxi to take us to our house.

The Guard didn’t stop repeating his words “How terrible; me, the hajia حجية (he meant my mother) and this girl are all going to smash out…., “

“Putting a bomb in this place will kill us all”, “surely; we are going to die, and no one will survive”

I don’t think he was a humorous nor was afraid but he was REALLY annoying me. But After a long thinking, I guess he passed through this experience before, otherwise he wasn’t going to be that sure of our possible death!! ^__*

*Frog phobia may work for suspected person:

Entering the college from the main gate will cost you 90 seconds by women standing in the middle of the entrance who is working as check point, looking into your bag and searching for cell phone or grenade you hide inside!!

In the first stage in our college, we had to bring some live frog for dissection purpose (^__^ Humanitarian purposes, ha??), my friend who had put her frog and cell phone in a container stopped in this check point, the women asked her what she had put inside the container, my friends replied with confidence “nothing, it’s just a live frog for the lab, do you want to have a look “, the women cried : go away and give the turn to the next.

Note: check point is looking for cell phone with cameras which are not allowed to be carried inside the college for unreasonable causes.

But why the shell and grenade are not allowed? I still can’t find out, but I don’t bring them with me anyway ^__* let's hope this have a reasonable causes!!.

*Bullets and Explosion phobia: (Ballistophobia)

Since the car bomb exploded near her sisters and left an injury on them, my friend (N) has a phobia and whenever any explosion takes place, she becomes pale and asks for a seat!!

How lucky, she has many couches and chairs in her house so she can enjoy her summer holiday setting for along long times each day!! ^__^

_Do you know that Iraqi people’s minds always translate any loud sound as it was a sound of expulsion?

You can identify Iraqi people who will lower their head and may but their hand around whenever loud sound is heard.

Once I was out of Iraq _a balloon punctured and made a sound which freaked me out so a man in the shop brought me a glass of water.

* 8 glass of water is the daily need for normal person, 10 glass of water for iraqi people!!! Just kidding *


I always feel a little freaky when I see boxes in the middle of the street!, and When I see a man with a long beard and short (dishdasha دشداشة)!!! On the other hand, I am the kind who like beard for elder men!! Its strange how life put you in a position that you can’t know what is your view of issues!!


Some people have fears from driving a car in Mosul's streets, from being near one of the government building, from participate in the elections, from taking a taxi, from visiting Shiea's neighborhood, from being rich!and there are some kinds who have fears from going out of house even in a shiny lovely day (random bulets, sudden curfew, booby cars,..to the end of the list)


That's all what come to my mind as examples of iraqi's phobia

By following those links, you can read:

About me recently updated.

My book recently published.

I would like to read your comments, may you all leave your footprints in this blog!



13 comments:

Roy said...

That was a very good post. It was a very funny way of looking at a very bad situation. I actually laughed at your description of Mosul and I know it's not a funny place to live.

Hadia ( pseudoname) said...

Thank you Roy :)
I am happy that you like it, we have a say in Arabic شر البلية ما يضحك hard to translate it but it makes Mosul a danger,funny place.

John said...

Dear Hadia,
I'm sorry that you and the other citizens of Mosul are still suffering so much. It seems like a mild, chronic kind of post-traumatic stress syndrome. It is very sad. The story about the frog in the purse was funny, though. It reminded me of a story that my father told me about a time when he and his brothers-in-law were worm farmers. There really is such a thing -- they had some land and knew a farmer with extra manure, so they would actually grow thousands of earthworms and sell them to fishermen to use as bait. They sometimes took them to Canada in their truck because there are many recreational fishermen there. One time they were searched by a border guard to find out what they had in all those boxes in their truck. The man opened the box and it was full of worms!

Hadia ( pseudoname) said...

Hey Joh,it's nice to see your comment.. you are one of the best reader I have (those how comment :D)

Great story, I guess those worms were live !!
poor guard :) !!

Average American said...

Hadia, thank you so much for this VERY interesting post. I had often wondered how Iraqi's were handling the stress of war. I was in a war as a soldier way way way before you were even born and so I know how it affects soldiers. From what you say, it is as bad or maybe worse for the civilians. At least we could fight back.

I think John is right, it really is PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder. Actually, I would be much more surprised if people weren't affected by all the violence. It seems that Iraq has many Dentists, but a shortage of doctors. How about doctors for the mental wounds? Is there a shortage there also?

I hope that you and your loved ones, and all Iraqi's can enjoy a peaceful country VERY soon. I truely believe the worse is over but I imagine some of the straggling thugs and thieves will be around for a while yet.

David said...

Dear Hadia,

Congratulations on the publication of your book! I am very happy for you. :D I will order a copy. I wish you good luck with the book, and I hope that many people will read it.

I used to have a phobia for long legged spiders. I guess I was afraid they could run really fast and crawl all over me! Well, I was pretty young then. Spiders don't scare me any more. Actually, I think they are very interesting, as long as they don't try to bite me. ;)

Congratulations on your 20th birthday! It has been a long time since I first discovered your blog. I think you were only 15. You have come a long way since then!

I am glad that you had such an enjoyable time in Saudi Arabia for Umrah. The sweets that you served your guests after returning look delicious!

Take care.

John said...

Yes, happy birthday Hadia!

P.S. Of course the worms were live! If you were a fish, would you want to eat a worm that wasn't fresh? ;-) I thought the whole story was just a joke, but my father actually showed me an old machine with a barrel that my grandfather had put together for filtering worms out from their mud. My grandfather was very clever and might have been a good engineer, but he came from a poor family and had to get a job on the railroad.

John said...

Dear Hadia,
I received your book yesterday.
I was impressed, as I knew I would be.
Very Good Job!

don said...

Dear Hadia,

Wow, how the time has gone by. Happy birthday from Montana. Every time I hear about Mosul I think of you and your family. You are in my thoughts.

Don

blue said...

Dear Hadia!


This this is my first time reading your blog, I was googling Mosul and then I came across this blog. I don't know if you still update it, but I really hope so! I understand that you quite recently published a book, I know I'm a bit late but: congratulations! I'll try to get a copy of it. Anyway, I just want to say that I look forward to read your blog.

All of my love

John said...

Dear Hadia,
Best wishes for a happy and healthy Ramadan and lots of blessings.

ladyra said...

Ah, Hadiya, Salaam ya habibati. Ana ismee Stephanie, wa darastu al-loghua arabia fi al-yemen. Lakn attakalum arabi shwoye shwoye.

Ok, now in english so I can express myself better - I will try to improve my arabic. I can write it with many spelling mistakes but I do not have an arabic keyboard.

I found out about your blog because I bought your book here in Vancouver, Canada. I have not finished reading it yet.

I have always been against this stupid war in Iraq. Even during the first Gulf War I used to hold my baby tight and sing to him, that he would grow up in a world where such things would not be possible.

Reading your story brings tears to my eyes. Iraq is in my prayers, always. I know you must have read this so many times: I am sorry for what the Iraqis have experienced.

I think you have what we call "post-traumatic stress disorder" - this 'hardening of the heart' that you are experiencing... if you did not protect your heart by hardening it it would break wide open, and you could not cope any longer.

You are such an amazing and strong woman. I hope so much for you that your children will experience peace and that Iraq will once again be beautiful. I know it will have scars, for a long, long, long time. But I pray for it to heal.

John said...

Thinking of you Hadia --
I hope you will be able to be gentle and patient with yourself and don't be angry at yourself. I hope this month will be one of some kind of special blessing for you somehow from Allah.