Didar Masifi

dmasifi289@yahoo.ca

This nostalgic old expression might be a good one to become an apologetic statement for a spelling mistake occurred in my previous writing. In which the word of home was typed by mistake instead of whom. So to whom the fingers of blaming are pointed is not issue as much as concerns about my dear readers and their reaction. Like every normal person being criticized because of something, I tried to throw responsibility on somebody else. And when first I reviewed my published writing titled “My book is my book” in Dengekan, I disappointed just like you to see a spelling mistake in the first sentence. In my case the stuff of Dengekan and my dumb computer were my easy choices to blame. I wrote an urgent complaining e-mail to Mr. Omer, the person in charge and slapped my keyboard, thirteen inches screen, and the arrogant hard drive of my computer. But I’ve got no respond from any one of them, and that was so irritating. Waiting there in front of my computer rereading my writing a few times which bothered me more, so I went down stairs and tuned the TV on hopping to see something enjoyable to ease my day. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any despite punching all remote control’s buttons and waiting minutes long for all boring advertisings to be finish. Again there was nothing, so I stuck with a channel that was broadcasting news in the mouth of an elegant middle age female anchor. The kind of news I wasn’t waiting for came from Philippine where authorities released a new currency in which the name of president Arroyo was mistakenly printed. I sighted because of its similarity with my problem even my spelling mistake wasn’t comparable with what had happened in Philippine. Also neither my writing nor the Kurdish website that I write for every week make or loose any money in respect of that.

 Both of our mistakes were foolish and show the lack of carefulness in typing words, so laughter from a Spelling Bee champion kid to both of us can be a tutorial buzz, Philippine authorities and me. First Philippine with its long history of political corruption needs focus more about a currency that seldom brought food to poor peoples’ tables. Secondly I, the home sick writer to whom you should blame have to be more careful in dealing with both the English’s stupid spelling, and the Microsoft Word program.

After I calm down from the anger of seeing my writing with a stupid mistake in the beginning, I checked my draft writing and as result I found that the mistake was mine. There I remembered a Kurdish expression interpreted as “Blame yourself, before you blame others” also a poem by the well known Kurdish poet Sherko Bekas came to my mind in which he describes his ten fingers as ten thieves or ten ministers of corruption. The poem dated back to 1993 when he was the minister of culture in the first Kurdish government and to which not short after he handed his resignation. So should I resign from writing for a while or even with this mistake still there are some readers who taste my writings.

The other day I was thinking about a friend of mine who used to send me letters from Germany and in all his letters, he was repeating the same title that I have it today as an apology for my previous mistake and as title for this writing. Additionally, back home I kept tens of his letters that were titling “East or West, Home is best!” During years of receiving these letters Kurdistan was experiencing a brutal civil war and I had a very secluded life never seen a sea or kissed a girl. Consequently, I hated this expression, my friend, myself, and my home, and I liked to fly like a bird.

Now living in the other side of the world and thinking deeply about the significant meaning of the word of home and which captures all my thoughts when I write. I excuse myself from that mistake in my previous writing and resume writing like nothing had happened.

I may need you to excuse me too.

And ask you to see me as a human that have an ET inside and who can spell just one word which is named home.

Home!