I’m sure you all know Lubna in Baghdad. She is one of our most loyal contributors on World Have Your Say. Today she sent me a message to say that she narrowly missed two roadside bombs and that she had cheated death twice. Here is her message.
Hi
I saw death with my own eyes twice today.
Today I was supposed to have my big obstetrics exam. The majority of the main roads in Baghdad are blocked since yesterday because of the visit of the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, to Baghdad.
Early in the morning today at about 6:45 Am my driver came to my house to pick me up to college, my two girlfriends were in the car (It’s extremely unsafe for Baghdadi girls to use the public transport to move around in Baghdad, so I and 3 of my best girlfriends have hired a private driver inorder to pick us to college).
As we got closer to the district in which my college lies, a roadside bomb has exploded at a close distance ahead of us. So we all decided to go back home. On our way back home, another roadside bomb has exploded also at a close distance behind us. I saw the other car flying in the air.
My heart is still trembling till now. I’m thinking of those innocent people who were in the car that flied in the air. Our car stepped on the bomb, and it didn’t explode, the other car was behind us, it stepped on the bomb, and flied in the air, and those innocent people were in it.
So in the end we got back home. And We missed our obsestrics exam. And that’s a very ordinary day of our ordinary daily Baghdadi life.
Our Iraqi government and the International community are asking us to go on with our daily lives in a way which is as close to normal as possible inspite of the hidden death in every street of Baghdad, and this is not acceptable at all. All Iraqis must go on a continuous peaceful generalised strike until all our political leaders, the US occupation forces, and the whole International community get together and do something to end this tragedy.
Do you think that Iraqis are alive ?! No my good friends, Iraqis are experiencing SLOW DEATH on a daily basis. And this has to stop. Enough is Enough.
With my love.
Yours forever, Lubna.
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BBC World Have Your Say 
Lubna,…. Just ….. Sorry. Please be careful.
Dear Lubna, I can’t even begin to image what an “ordinary day…” for you must be like and I can only applaud your courage to come foward and share your experience with us. My only wish is that don’t give up on your dream of becoming an obstetrician, but PLEASE… PLEASE… BE VERY CARLFULL.
JULIO TIBANA (MOZAMBIQUE)
life is so precious and yet so fragile. Please be careful Lubna.
am a great fan of lubna.she is strong lady.may God bless and protect her.
Lubna,
I find your posts interesting and inspirational. Please be careful and take care
I havw no idea what you are living with on a daily basis. I just hope that one day Bagdhad can return to be being a safe place for you and your freinds and family
all my love
Dave
Sorry to hear about this and glad it wasn’t any worse. I hope for the sake of all Iraqis that there is a decisive end to what’s happening there sooner rather than later.
It is very sad to know that people have to go through this kind of harrowing experiences for no fault of theirs. I wish that all violence will come to an end soon and the ‘ordinary day’ change for better for Lubna and all citizens of Iraq.
Lubna: You must be very brave.
But what motivates the bombers to keep bombing?
They must understand that as soon as they stop their violence, the sooner the American forces will prepare to leave.
Are the bombers complete idiots?
I am only sorry I was not more vocal against the invasion of Iraq.
Keep writing!
–Regards, Louisville, Kentucky, USA.
Lubna I hope you, your family, your friends and all the Iraq people move away from these haunting death moments and may piece be upon you.
Repeat advice-
Leave.
Survival elsewhere will allow you to return later.
If it takes civil disobedience to get your government and others to listen to the Iraqi people, Lubna, I know that you will find a great amount of support from the people of these messages.
I can only reiterate what others have said above and that we are all behind you and want nothing else other than your safety.
Be safe and Peace.
Will
dear Lubna, thank God for your safety. i did not go to college yesterday but i heard the explosions at home. Our house has shaken from the explosions intensity.
well it is our fate and we must keep on. what is good is that you are alive and that it enough to strength your faith in Allah.
Hi there all,
I am trying to learn this blog community thing and I hope you can be patient and helpful with my mistakes. I saw that if you want to suggest a topic you go to the first posting of the day, but I am probably not at the right place.
Lubna, my heart pounds for you and your story. I am so glad you are alive and sharing your experience.
Please let me know how to suggest a topic. I have chronic illness and soemtimes I make mistakes becasue I’m in pain and sometimes because I am highly and happily medicated. Just lost my health care, so it’s more of the former, but as a survivor of plain old US everyday abuse, I’ve learnd that if someone’s not trying to kill or hurt me, it’s a beautiful day.
Lubna, have you found that things that used to bother you are now not so annoying, as long as they don’t trigger the fear and trauma? Waiting in line is nothing to me. Being stuck in traffic–who cares? People’s mistakes in driving, so what? And when somene honks at me for making a mistake myself I smile sheepishly and wave in apology instead of pretending I didn’t hear. That’s the upside to PTSD for me.
I used to want to travel the globe. Now even though some days I do honestly wish for death rather than being what I call a mentally ill pain in the ass (for the gut stuff) rainbow trash slut, I find so much beauty and pleasure that I missed before I became disabled.
I hope I did not use any inappropriate words here. I tried to post my song about The Wire and lesbians on tv to a The Wire blog and it would not allow the word fetishize but would allow another that suprised me until I realized it also could be a man’s name.
I just learned to blog and put my blog up a few days ago. I gave Ros a hard time for saying no to my topic of white men and labels!
My blog has a lot of inappropirate words and some graphic imagery about sex and/or abuse, be forewarned but not necessarliy foreskinned. I also try to joke about it because too much pain and anger makes people want to run but if I make you laugh you’ll probably stick around.
Tonight I have insomnia and am writing a lot. I am really funny! Check me out. I rarely leave my house and I can’t sit at the computer for long, but I am raring for some revolting community. (my header says Yes! I am revolting.)
thanks for listening and reading and writing and speaking.
going to go read some more of you so I don’t hog all the time for myself.
love and thanks,
Ruby
ps
I just realized how stupid it was to use driving and car metahpors. Duh! I call that Rubyoga–stand on one foot, open mouth, insert other foot. apogozies and I’ll try to make my methaphors about when I don’t feel trauma about something that you’ve not just been traumatized by!
love and thanks
ruby
Well, what can i say the troubles over there are well documented. Even if i tell you to be careful it wont make a difference because many have been careful and have still lost thier lives. I cant begin imagine what life is like over there. I pray that GOD be with you and a million others.
God bless.
Hi Lubna,
I am glad that you are safe after those two explosions. I hope that Iraq will turn to normality as soon as possible. Don’t despair, there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.
Will this crazyness ever end??? I cannot even begin to imagine what life in Iraq must be like on a daily basis. I’m not a religous person but I hope with all my heart that life will return to normal sometime, sooner hopefully than later. Don’t loose your courage and your will to go on. It must get better!
Open letter to Lubna
Why are you living in that God forsaken country? God forbid, anything should hurt you. I admire the things you said and wrote. please may nothing bad happen .
with love from Peter in Singapore .
THANKS A MILLION to all of you my Precious friends. I’m really very, very grateful to each one of you guys for taking the time to write a message of support to me and to the cause of my country. Today I’m feeling rather better than yesterday, and I’m studying at the moment. Tomorrow I’ll have my big forensic medicine exam Inshallah. Guys, be sure that we’ll never give up no matter happened, and we’ll hang in there till the end. Thanks a million again to all of you my good friends. With my love. Yours forever, Lubna in Baghdad.
Lubna: I hardly know what to say. Take care, trust in Spirit as I know you do, and know that many people pray in their own way for you. Virginia in Portland, OR
Lubna, pole (poh-leh, in Kiswahili this means ‘sorry; my deepest sympathies). You have become a constant in my life through your written and spoken words, and you are a person I have grown to respect and admire for your courage, strength and conviction. I share your comments with my two girls all the time. You have become a part of our family, and a role model to us. Since we heard what happened, you have joined our ‘stay safe-be blessed’ prayer tree. Today at school, my daughters added you to their class prayer trees. We pray for the safety of you and your family. Take courage. Be blessed.
asalamualakum Lubna,
Sorry to hear about what happened to you.Sorry I took so long to right back.I can’t imagine what you go through your daily life.Good luck whith your exam.May ALLAH protect you.
Yours Truly,
Abda masalami
lubna lady,
you know i love you. i am chiming in with the rest of the people to say YOU ROCK and thanks for keeping your reality real to us, as real as can be through the written and spoken word.
May Allah grant you peace, protection, safety.
Sheri, Russ, Ava, Michael, and my mom are thinking of you. love anita
i know you will do well on your test. God is guiding you through everything. keep your face to the sun, little one. i’ll pray when i feel the rays on my face, for you.
anita
Dearest Lubna,
You and I spoke on your birthday last year on WHYS. I cannot agree with you more that there needs to be some kind of intelligent, coordinated effort to end this horror for the Iraqi people. I’ll continue to contact my government representatives and send that strong message, including your words.
Thinking of you,
Maria
Lubna, THANK YOU for providing HOPE where there is so much dispair, DIALOG where there is so much silence amid so much noise, COURAGE to know right from wrong and act upon it. You represent the best in all of us – may the rest of us rise to meet your challenge!
Ali- a 25 years old handsome young man. He’s my neighbour. Yesterday Ali had made the most fatal decision of his entire life. He decided to go to the barber to have his hair cut. And he was murdered.
Yea, Ali was one of the 55 people who lost their lives during yesterday’s two terrorist attacks which took place in my beloved district Al Karradah. 121 others were wounded. Well, so what ?! This is normal, and it happens everyday in Iraq. So why should anyone bother him/herself about it. Innocent civilians are dying each day in Iraq. Well, what’s the new in that ?! With my love. Yours forever, Lubna.
Lubna: i hope you are studying hard on your education. And I hope you are safe and sound in Baghdad, Iraq…
I hope you get a good job in the medical system in your
country!
Dennis
Madrid, United States of America
Hi LUBNA, thanxs to teh ALMIGHTY GOD that he has kept you alive up to now.I am sure we shall still be able to get first hand info from Iraq through your contributins to WHYS.Be calm dear.
PHILLIP KIHUMURO( Kampala)
Lubna,
My deepest sympathy for your loss, and another offer of support for your daily realities. Move forward step by step, keep finding your goals, and reasons for your joyous celebration of life.
Love,
Rebecca
Hi Lubna,
Grateful to God he provided escape for you and your two lady friends. Pls take good care of urself and never fail to pray to Jehovah always to protect, guide and shepherd u in all ur eneavours.
With Utmost Love,
Samuel Adzaka
I hope and pray the you [and your country]
are safe….
Dennis from Madrid, United States of America