Salam

                                                                               Peace

In loving memory of all peace lovers!

I wrote these stories in different languages so that a large number of people can read them. I am really proud to share my writings with all of you. All I long for is peace! This is, indeed, the only way for us, humans, to live in safety.

                                                                              White Black

In a lost village among the hills, surrounded by the Rif Mountains in the north of Morocco, in the mid forties of the twentieth century, lived my grandparents. My mother was a child when she had her life’s worst experience. She was playing with her straw toy one night. My grandfather was absent. My grandmother was praying. My uncle, only a baby of eight months, was sleeping by my mother. Suddenly a ghost appeared. The baby was crying. My mother looked at the stranger strangling the baby, covered her eyes with her hands and, then, cried. The monster’s face was half black half white, with wide-open eyes.  My grandmother hurried to save her children. The ghost ascended leaving the baby dead. My mother could see the tree outside through the wall.

The next morning, when my grand-father came back home, the baby had already been buried. He cried bitterly.

My mother often told me about ghosts, but this story was the only one I never forgot. Imagine what power could annul the wall presence to let the child see a tree she used to go out to see. Till the very day she died and, whenever she lost consciousness, my mother cited ghosts’ names and strange reminiscences. The most she feared was the one who killed her little brother. My grandmother never had boys!

All I can infer is that we are not but ghosts and remote past. Prepare yourself for the real life!

                                                                              Peace

I can hardly maintain my family, but I am surviving anyway. I feel pity for those who cannot afford their least needs. I have worked as a guard in a car-park in Tetuan every day since August 9, 1999 like a slave for a low wages. I meet tourists from different nationalities. I must admit that most of them are well educated people. But, sometimes there are exceptions. That is not a pretext for me to say that all western people are arrogant. I speak three foreign languages: Spanish, French and English. This is my advantage. It helps me explain myself far better than the false guides a tourist finds in the street. Some of the tourists I met asked about safety in the country and I assured them that my country is safer than many western countries. So, they had nothing to worry about. They asked me about terrorism and I told them violence has nothing to do with Islam, which already bears the meaning of peace and the daily Islamic greeting is Salam. Unfortunately, I had a bad experience in the summer of 2007. There was a jam in the car-park. It happens all over the world during summer time. A European burst out like an insane saying we are all animals.  I came up to him. I saw he was smoking. I asked him:  “Have you ever seen an animal smoke? A bird, a cow... But, you smoke! Anyway, me the animal, I am going to pay for you.” A girl, who was behind him in the car, told me he was drunk. I said: “That’s why he is so sincere!”

I neither smoke nor drink alcohol. When I am walking, I worry about the ants on my way. Muslims, all over the world, are expected to act civically and not respond to provocation whatever the case. Remember the words of the prophet who was hurt by his own people and bleeding, but prayed: «Allah (God), forgive my people, they do not know!” To defend the prophet we only need to set good examples to the rest of the world, not by insulting those who insult him. Let us be live characters like the true believers we read about in Koran: “and when the ignorant address them [harshly], they say [words of] peace,” Patience and wisdom! Islam is synonym of peace. Never forget this! And remember, the first message to the prophet was: “Read!” The more you read the better you can face the world.