The Right Decision to make Mistakes

Sara and I are both from Basra; our mothers were friends when they were young. Yet, life took us far away from each other; I spent nearly half of my life in the Dearest Baghdad while she did her medical school in Basra.

Well, at the moment we’re living in the same city and planning to move to the same one as well, we also miss the same place.

Meeting Sara means bringing back all the memories we have; on the train we had a special story to remember, she knows about it better than I do, yet, it’s familiar to both of us.

I met Dr. A once in my life when I was a little boy in 1991, of course he doesn’t know me but I heard a lot about him.

My mother and aunts were friends of his wife; I remember one of my aunts mentioning her with criticism as she had five children which sounded too much for my aunt.

As far as Sara concerned, he represents a friend and a doctor who she admires.

He had a very good reputation in the Teaching hospital in Basra as he was the head of that hospital.

One night, in the early days of the war, the invaders decided to change the life of him forever, as usual their “kindness” doesn’t know limits, and they don’t hurt anyone unless it’s a “simple” mistake.

A stray rocket “knocked, and requested to get inside” and changed all the dreams, “by mistake” he got a misery, on that night, many numbers were changed, especially the number of his family members.

All of a sudden and for no sin, he and his wife had to realize that, they’ve got one son as his two other sons and two daughters went to the other world, where there are no beasts.

Those four were part of the loss, but the whole of it, his mother, his sister who had just finished her high qualifications in medicine, and his nephew who insisted to spend the night in his uncle’s house rather than going with his parents.

And not quite sure whether I missed to mention someone else.

All what Sara ended the story with, was telling me that his wife was unable to cry and he was crying in dark.

I just wonder why was that family destroyed, won’t be surprised if someone says that the Iraqi government was around.

Is it the way saying that “Americans and Brits are stupid idiots”? Does that mean by all the means that they don’t care about human beings?

I’ve seen many reports and movies which tell about stopping big operations just because someone would be hurt; is it true?!

In case it was a mistake; was there any plan to stop further “mistakes”.

Al-Amriya shelter was a mistake, killing Layla Al-Attar was a mistake, a million of Iraqi children were left to die without food or medicine under the sanction was a mistake, raping people in Abu Ghraib prison was a mistake, killing many families during the war was always by mistake, destroying the Iraqi army was a mistake, what Black water members did was a mistake.

Yet, I heard “the pig” Bush, lying again and again “"The decision to remove Saddam Hussein was the right decision early in my presidency. It is the right decision at this point in my presidency and it will forever be the right decision”.

I think they said before that the war was about protecting the world from the weapons of mass destruction which America thought “by mistake” Saddam had.

But his decision was right, was absolutely right, the right thing which led to many mistakes but still right.

I wonder what the next mistake will be. Wish not fragmenting Iraq.