Here Ends 2008

The year has ended, the last year in my twenties and the entrance to my thirties. Now looking back on 2008 I see great things that took place. Let me start with 2 lifetime experiences that left a mark in my life and I presume will be kept in my account of achievements. The first being the Omra, with the intense emotional experience that is not comparable to any other thing I went through and having my book published; something I'm still trying to believe and cope with. Scanning the year, January, my favorite month greeted me with a trip to Turkey, I enjoyed every minute, the company of my lovely colleagues, the snow droplets falling on my face in the freezing mornings, walking in the narrow streets of Istanbul, absorbing history from every corner, indulging in the greenery of the parks and the splendors of the ancient palaces and gathering parts of me in Hagia Sophia and the Blue Mosque listening to the most beautiful prayer call I have ever heard. March found me in a situation where I was "forced" to socialize at work, and surprised me with my ability to build very strong relations with people I never expected to get closer to. April saw me in Sharm El Sheikh, enjoying the idle feeling and reading a lot of books on the beaches of the red sea, then it hit me with a terrible car accident that made my car look something like a deformed coke can. May rewarded me with a nice trip to Iran, the fascinating country that I love, with its lovely beautiful people, impressing development and breath taking history that drowns me wherever I go. Then June witnessed me in the biggest bookshop in Cairo, facing a crowd of dear familiar faces, feeling embarrassed like I've never felt in my life, wishing I were somewhere else and yet expected to speak about my book and my experience as a writer who is celebrating the launch of his first book. The week after, I was in Switzerland, wandering in Zermatt and absorbing as much as I can of its snow covered mountains and green covered hills, climbing up to 4.5 Km, breathing clean air, surrounded by beauty that words cannot describe, wishing if time could stop and dreaming of a small wooden hut on the mountains. August found me in the suffocating city of Jeddah, hating it, hating my job and feeling extremely nostalgic to Cairo that I hate the most! Only seeing the Kaaba and cuddling this new-born connection to its vicinity that made up for the horrible Saudi experience. August also hit me with a personal loss, a friend that I thought close, a shocking painful loss that I managed to overcome, a proof that I am performing better in managing losses. October, oh that lovely autumn month, it saw me walking in Europe, my beloved Europe, bowing in respect to the streets of Berlin, standing in awe in front of the masterpieces of El Prado in Madrid, starring in a state of disbelief at the marvellous treasures of Alhambra in Granada and enjoying the company of my dear friends Camel and Ines, feeling overwhelmed in the great cathedral of Cordoba, finding myself in La Giralda and the beautiful streets of Sevilla and feeling dislocated in Barcelona. But this lovely tour ended with a visit in my beloved Paris, kissing its streets with my eyes, crying on my departure day and asking God to bring me back, to keep me there forever. November sent me to London, walking in its childhood-related streets and absorbing the fine art in the National Gallery. December saw me in Algeria, breathing the clean air and absorbing the green mountains overlooking the sea in Oran, one of the best business trips I ever had. And ends 2008, sending me into another stage of my life, with hopes and dreams, difficulties and challenges, pains and sorrows, gains and losses, happiness and pleasures, with huge plans to achieve and happiness to spread on people I love. Of all the wishes I have in this new year, I hope I will never be a source of pain or disappointed to anyone who loves and believes in me.