February, 11, 2011. What seemed impossible or improbable barely 18 days ago, has just taken place. Hosni Mubarak, ex-president of the ancient land of Egypt, has stepped down. I am sure that I share the sentiments of most people out there, that were following this whole drama unfold these last 18 days, when I say, it was a moment of such spontaneous elation and euphoria, the moment the news broke out. As it is in such times of great events, I instinctively picked up the phone and dialed my wife. "Have you heard? People are tweeting about it, Mubarak has stepped down!" Someone once said, the reason humans like sharing news like this is, it magnifies the experience while sharing it. I think they were right. Twitter exploded into expressions of joy, thanks, relief, mixed with wonder and amazement at what just happened. I was glad to be sharing this moment, and felt privileged to have witnessed this great event.
The ramifications of this #JAN25 revolution, as it has famously been referred to on Twitter, will be very, very far reaching, I am sure. One can almost sense, the uneasiness in all the other corrupt dictators of the world - wondering if their turn is next. The people of Egypt have shown us, the power of solidarity, of believing in their cause, of the immense power of this human will. I think today, I speak for all of us when I say, we are all Egyptians. You have done us proud, our brothers and sisters!
The 1st decade of the new millennium, began with September 11 - And that laid down the theme for pretty much the rest of that decade. This decade started first, with the Sidi-Bouzid, Tunisia uprising and now the Meydan Tahrir, Egyptian revolution. Let's hope, Insha-Allah ( Arabic phrase meaning - With the will of Allah) this becomes the decade of spring cleaning, of new leaders, of solutions to the ever-increasing challenges of modern-day life. It hasn't disappointed so far.
For now, lets just celebrate with the people of Tahrir. There is a time for everything. And lets remember the young and old, that gave their lives in this momentous victory.
