House of Curiosity...

The day, in which the king passes by or visits any location, will always be marked, ironically, by an inkling to evade work.

I heard a great story few weeks ago. I am not sure how true it is, but I certainly hope it is not. The story was about a state of the art youth centre that has been built a year ago as a response to an acute need in an area. What is particularly interesting about this centre is that youth are not allowed in! They will only be allowed in when the king opens it officially.

The people who told me the story explained that those who manage the centre need to make sure that it stays in a top notch condition, until that day his majesty comes to open it.” You know young people destroy things and it should stay clean” my feeling was yeah right, who cares about youth, until the opening ceremony day, they have to wait in the streets.

I am not sure what bothered me more the story or the attitude towards it, especially that those who mentioned the situation are considered a governmental body that caters for youth.

On a different occasion. I spent last week trying to explain to people in a “Mafraq” organization that we should not stop a planned training from taking place because His Majesty might be in Mafraq. I am not sure when i turned into a preacher, but i heard myself repeat a line over and over again, “I am sure the king will be happier seeing us work to build our nation!”

On Saturday in Mafraq

The training did go through, but it was one of those trainings where you wished you did not plan at all.  A bunch of participants left in the middle of the training without any warning. They disappeared for several hours and when they finally showed up; they threw fits because they were not given certificates of attendance. Naturally, they waved the patriotism card.

On the one hand, I understand the glory of seeing the king. I truly do. However, the readiness in which people sacrifice work and then pretend it is “patriotism” is something that surprises me every time.

In the youth centre mentioned earlier, I am not sure how leaving youth in the streets vulnerable to drugs and conflicts with the law is considered patriotic… for some reason it seems to me that attracting young people is more important that a good opening ceremony… but what would I know?

Quick note with the help of our friend Wikipedia.

“During the 18th century Age of Enlightenment, the notion of patriotism continued to be separate from the notion of nationalism. Instead, patriotism was defined as devotion to humanity and beneficence. For example, providing charity, criticizing slavery, and denouncing excessive penal laws were all considered patriotic.