Patriots

It is UAE national day and it is a big deal.

There is national pride here, but not the American version. There is none of the ‘we are the best’ comparitism. There are no trucks, there are no fireworks, shirts remain on. There are flags.

There is a respectful pride here.

It is different from Australia. There is no drunken barbecues, no one is draped in the flag. It is not an excuse for a day off to get pissed. There is no guilt or shame that the celebration is a reminder to the indigenous community that they have had their entire culture torn from them.

Simon Weil writes of the connection to country in: The Need for Roots: prelude towards a declaration of duties towards mankind. She describes plants, like people, being torn from their place in nature, how they will never flourish, and likely die. Colonisation did this to the indigenous people of Australia, not only did they tear them from their land, they transplanted them into a foreign culture and asked them to thank colonisation for making eveything better for their people.

“To be rooted is perhaps the most important and least recognized need of the human soul.”

Simone Weil

There is no guilt today. There is no shame. There are no comparrisons or bragging about where the UAE sits in the world. No one is starting riots with minority groups in Cronulla, drunk and behaving badly.

When foreigners wear the abaya and the kandora, the locals fell pride that their culture is being shared. There are no cries of appropriation.

Maybe this will change over time, the UAE is a young country. As time goes on countries and their people do things they are not proud of. Who can say.

But today, the UAE is 52 years old and it’s people love it.

“A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government.”

Edward Abbey

I am reluctant to post the image of Sharibala, the camel. He was hobbled with rope at one point and it made me uncomfortable. I resisted the urge to set him free.