Blessed Bird

                                       

It was Monday morning, the sun has just shined and the world was filled with the rays of the golden brown sun. A small dove was moving around in the middle of the street. It appeared as if it was looking for something lost.it was confused and stressed as I was coming closer. It hesitated to fly once, twice and more.finally it flied a small distance and dodged me. When I passed by its former place, there I saw a small dove. It must be its offspring. it was fallen from the nest.the wounds in looked like as it was fallen from seven heavens or as if an atomic bomb exploded and the shreds wounded it.
I dared to touch it with a view to save it from the by passers and the stream of the cars that were about to pass. Suddenly, there came a sharp scream of a young lady on the second floor of the apartment." keep away from Jasmine" she said. She was very pretty with long hair, drawn eyebrows and charming face. I was astonished and knew nothing to say but to utter a murmur to fill the gap and break the silence caused by her loud scream. She added: "Don't you hear what I said?".then I felt like obliged to respond and defend myself. " Jasmine is a nice name. That's why she should be taken care of more". I felt as if I was about to convince her that I am catering of the dove. She said that Jasmine went out of the cage when she wanted to feed it and the mother. I asked her to come down to take it back to cage. When she came closer my heart was beating twice than before. I felt something towards the lady. We conversed for a while then she asked me to have tea together. Her house is such a luxurious one from the age of nineties. It was well equipped with costly furniture. The chairs from wood, the armchairs were made from leather. There were curtains allover the windows. The lady didn't want anyone to spy on here nor to know what's inside the house. There were some pets and some birds. When we sat to have tea. She introduced her family that were all pets and birds. She gave everyone a name. When I asked about her family, she bent her head looking to the cup of tea moving it and answered with a deep sigh:" They all passed away". I felt sorry for her. No sooner had she left her head and gazed at me, that she said:" it's ok ". Her parents and the two of her brothers died in a tragic car accident. They passed away on their road to hospital after a visit to aunt. Her only aunt is the sole member left on her family. Unfortunately, she suffers from the zhaymer, the illness characterized by making one lose the memory partially or even completely. The lady made many friends, but they were of no use. She suffered hardships to keep them. They were seizing her naivety and taking advantage of her. She finally got rid of most of them and lived with the pets. As we advanced in the conversation, I felt as if I liked her. It's that kind of feeling that makes one feel attracted to somebody. I wondered if she could accept my friendship. But I hesitated to ask her. It was about 9:00 a.m . I had to head to my shop. I told here about myself. I wanted to be as humble as I was all the time. Then I was brief saying that my name is Jim. My friends called me Dji and that's the name of my shop. I am a shop owner and shop keeper. I was 26 at that time. Lila was 21. She worked in a pharmacy and she had a big sum of heritage. She owned a small mall, she was engaged in a private classical music school. I was glad that I knew some about her that would help me arrange for an appointment. I asked her for a date and accepted. The first time was a bit hard due to lack of harmony as I was too shy. After dating for about a month, I decided that it's the time to confess that I am in love with her. We met as usual in the neighborhood's restaurant. I picked up a small red box.then I pushed it softly towards her. She said:"what's that" I asked her to open and see on her own. But she insisted to know what was inside the box and for which reason. I said: today is the sixth of December. It is a cold day but, to me,it is too hot. It is a special day for you. It's your birthday." She was shocked how did I know about her birthday. But I went on and said that the gift is not only for the birthday. It was a proposal. It was also for our engagement if you please to marry me. She burst in tears and squeezed my hands. There were an amalgamation of feelings. She smiled, she laughed,she cried and she was even embarrassed abruptly. She finely looked in my eyes and said:" I hereby announce myself your own wife till death. " I was really glad to hear that. It was as a second birth to me. I announced the news to all the people in the restaurant.they applauded congratulating us. Then we lived a happy life breeding birds and have some other vocations. We have had two little children too.

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What’s the deal with the digital etiquette?

            Unfortunately, some people can lose control the second they jump online. For instance, when they disagree with someone or have strong feelings about a topic, they end up in quarrel or say stuff they would never say in person. They may send rude emails or tough comments. They could even post arguments on message boards. This is called “flaming”, and it can lead to full-on flamers who exchange insulting arguments.

           Believe it or not, some people actually cruise around the internet looking to start flame wars. Some are free all the time. Some are aggressive and dogmatic. Whereas others are sadist; they become happy the time they make others suffer from their flames. These could be the reasons why they adore flaming. We call these trouble makers “trolls” .I don’t think that they necessarily become meaner people. Maybe they just forget rules.

           On the internet, it is pretty easy to stay anonymous or unidentified. Having a secret identity to hide behind can make people pretty brave. They forget that they are dealing with a real human being when all they see of you is a pseudo name, a fake image or funny icon.

It’s simple, just like in real life. You should treat other people the way you want to be treated. You wouldn’t want somebody to be rude to you, so don’t be rude to anyone else.

            Of course, netiquette is not just about being nice, it is also about communicating clearly. That means keeping emails and messages clear and to the point. It means making your messages easy to read and understand which depends a lot on your audience. For instance, some abbreviations and emoticons may be fine with friends. But they are not generally appropriate in formal communication. Furthermore, whatever you do, don’t write in all capital letters.   

           On the internet, writing all capital letters makes you seem like you are yelling. Also keep in mind that humor is not always obvious in writing. Without seeing facial expressions or hearing someone’s voice, it can be hard to tell the difference between a friendly joke and real cruelty. A message without a tone of voice is void of meaning or incomplete to full understand. One way to make sure you are communicating clearly is to re-read what you write before you send it. Check your tone, grammar, and spelling to be certain you really mean to say what you have written. Once your message is out, it is out! Lastly make sure you ask for permission before posting anything about your friends on blogs or social networking sites. People’s personal information is private and you can really ruin relationships if you post something that a friend or a friend’s parents or relatives don’t want on the web. You need always to keep in mind that the internet is not a private place; if you wouldn’t want a parent, a teacher, a school admission’s director, or a future employer to see something you post, don’t post it.

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The shoemaker and his son

             There was once upon a time a successful shoemaker living in a small village. He earned his living through making the best of the shoes to the people of the village. He got the leather from sheep slaughters. He started from scratch and there had been no one to help him. His sole son was less successful student. He then dropped out of school to work with his father.

            A local war was about to be ignited. People of the village would need some boots. One evening, he was driven to the castle to meet the king. The latter asked the shoemaker to prepare about one hundred shoes overnight. It was a hard task to fulfill in a short period. However, the old shoemaker had no choice but to accept with a few conditions. He asked about the leather and some servants to help him. Certainly, the king provided h with what he wanted. Two days later, the neighboring city's warriors were on the town's verge. A call upon men's village to help the numerous soldiers was the clear solution.

               The shoemaker hadn't finished all the shoes but had reached about 75 shoes. It was a great job. The king and his ministers were satisfied with the number of the shoes as they already had some on the castle. The trained soldiers guided by the chefs to the borders. They were followed with hesitating and panic citizens with different of the weapons. They suffered the long road to the border. But their horses and camels were as tough as their will. As they reached the verge at the dust, the chef provided them with the plan A. They had to scatter along the border in groups of fives. The plan b was that if they faced any danger, they had to whistle three times consecutively with a view to warn their friends and retreat back to the starting point. The soldiers gathered together and had some meal then they pray for victory. They scattered as the Chef ordered them. They found the enemy having fun and big fiesta. The soldiers sneaked and started to kill them one by one. They succeeded to expel the enemy out Of The borders.

              Back to the village the great warriors had a special party owing to their victory. Indulging in the luxury and food and entertained by the comedian of the village, two strangers managed to hijack the princess.

          Panic-stricken the son of the shoemaker screamed “They have stolen my bride to be”. The guards gathered to look for the princess. The king asked Pablo, the groom to be to look for his bride to be. He said: I promised you to marry you my only precious girl I have. But you have to prove that you deserve it as a man.” The king went on:” Take anything you want with you. Some guards will escort you to provide any necessary help”. Pablo decided to go in a tough adventure in his life. It is a matter of being or not. He decided to try to sit a trap for his envious friends.

        He asked about all his friends. They are all in the village except Larry. The latter has left earlier to an abandoned house mile away from the village. The reason being why Pablo went directly to that house was that Larry had no special thing to do there.

        On his arrival there, Pablo heard loud sharp screaming. It was the brave princess who was fighting defensively her kidnapper. Larry sneaked to the house, but there was a fierce dog near the fence. He asked the guards to get the dog busy with a view to sneak safely to the house. The guards killed the dog.  

         As Pablo break into the house, he came across Larry. The two rivals had a tough battle. Finally, Larry, escaped wounded. Pablo saved his princess and met the king halfway. Eventually, they went back to the village. A new ceremony has launched. It was the wedding ceremony of the shoemaker’s son and the princess. They lived a happy life and have two kids.  

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Today is a bit special and different rfom other  days. It is differnt due to many reasons. The first one is that my sister in law has left us to join her husband in USA. My two brothers, my sister and her husband accompanied her to the aeroport in Casablanca. I wish I had a chance to go with them for they are visiting different cities in the country, say Ifrane, Meknes, Imouzar and Azrou.
I am waiting for my brother to connect to see whether his wife arrived or not yet.
I did many activities. I went to run errands, I did shopping.I played soccer with friends too.
The good thing is that I have prepared the Local exam for my students that will take palce tomorrow

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A Lion's Big Share

           There was once upon a time, four allied animals who fight together to keep food on the table for themselves. They always went out to sit a trap and to hunt new preys.
           As usual, the fox went to seduce animals to follow him. His colleagues, the tiger, the lion and the bear sneaked in different places waiting for the preys to pass by. Each member in the deceiving team was doing specific task allotted by the lion who was the group's leader.
       Annoyed by the fox, a young well-built and fat deer decided to leave the herd moving away from where the fox is.  The further it went, the closer it became to death trap. No sooner had it passed near the three animals had they surrounded it. Obliviously, she skipped in the air for fear to flee. Alas, she collided with the beer's claws. She fell in her back but succeeded to stand on the four feet. She dodged the lion and fled. The tiger followed her as a flesh going out of the bow. After a small chase, the tiger managed to hamper the fastest prey. Then a lion's hit was received followed by glue like tightening with the claws. The deer couldn't surrender. She kept budging and moving. As the fox and the beer arrived consecutively, the fox started to yell and cry due to extreme happiness. The lion ordered him to divide the prey.
          The fox divided the dead deer but he kept a big share for himself. When he was asked about the reason behind keeping the big share, he said:" I am the fox, the most cunning of you. I do most of the job. I searched for the prey for a Long time. Then I suffered to seduce her and most of all I endangered my life going into a big deer's herd."  The three animals didn't like his arrogance. The lion killed him on the spot.”
           The boss ordered the tiger to separate the prey.  He divided into two. When they ask him about the reason behind it, he said:  “I am the fastest. I succeeded to hinder the deer. Then you lion caught it. I will take half of the prey, the bear is going to take another half; and the lion is going to take the dead fox.”
         The lion hit the tiger as soon as he finished his speech. The tiger fell dead. The boss asked the bear to divide the preys. The bear suggested taking the deer and half of the fox. However, the lion was to take the tiger and the other half of the fox.
          Since the lion didn't advocate the bear’s suggestion, a fierce fighting was ignited. The bear surrendered by the end. He left with bruises on his body. He managed to steal some parts of the body of the deer. Finely, he left the lion with his big share. 
 

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The Small Horse

             One day, a small horse went out to hang around. There in a small hill appeared a glimmering rainbow. His curiosity provoked him to go there.  As he came closer he saw offspring of different animals playing together. The cub addressed the foal: “come closer friend; let us hear from you." The foal hesitated and asked the lion: “What are you doing?".  The baby lion answered: “We are discussing our parents’ qualities”. The horse hesitated. When they ask him about his father's quality, He said: my father is full of good qualities. He is fast, brave, beautiful, and calm; and most of all is that he is humble and not arrogant.”
"Objection": said the animals at once.
"You selfish little horse, we all have parents having the same qualities.’
"You are right; we all have many things in common. But the horse is a bit special"
The lion replied:" what makes you so?

          The foal went on saying: “Men are taking advantage of us. They say the horse is beautiful and they use us in beauty contest, I said brave since they use us in wars, I said that we are fast since we are used in course contests. I said I am humble since I accept all the things men ascribed to me.”
The cub intervened and asked all the animals to ask their parents about the qualities that distinguish them from others. However, the piglet rejected the idea of the fox. He said that if they keep searching for the differences they may fight or fall apart. It would be better if they look for similarities. The crowd welcomed the idea. The next meeting the animals discovered they have many things in common. Eventually, they united and play more games.

Cub: baby of fox
Piglet: baby of the hedgehog
Foal: small horse.
Lion baby= cub

The moral: There are things that make some unique. However, we are all human beings and have many common points. We need to get rid of biased ideas and selfish doctrines. We need to accept others as they are so that we can live a better life.

By Unes Khartit.

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Moroccan women: The typical images on Moroccan women.

              Psychology has proved that all its branches agreed upon the fact that environment affects on the upbringing and personality of people. The environment moulds and shapes one’s personality. A person is affected by his parents doctrines, bias, stereotypes held toward different things and people. The same thing is proved to be true by the theory of Mustapha Hijazi.

            The theory is called “The psychology of depressed people”. It states that a depressed person yields to the things ascribed to him. If the person, for examples, is labeled stupid and less successful by his family, with time he will take it for guaranteed and assume that the claim is true. The fact is true with Moroccan women. They are regarded as inferior; henceforth they surrender and made themselves weak and margin. Accordingly, the environment affects much on a person’s personality than the biological and inherited features.

             Women in some Moroccan areas are much marginalized. Men use some degrading slogans and words while speaking about or addressing women. To mention but only a few,” the saying which is deeply disgracing and degrading women: “Lamra hashak “. This phrase is used in the south east of Morocco. However, it is about to distinct nowadays thanks to many factors.

             Moroccan women are known by many characteristics that make them so special. One of these typical images on Women in general and on the Moroccan in particular is Satanism. Demonism, foxiness and lack of faith are the ascribed characteristics to women since ancient times. The most known religions admit that woman is the origin of the sin. They are the cause for Man to be dispelled from God’s mercy. Christians believe that the French word” femme” from the Latin language refers to “Fe Minus”. The word means “carence de foi”; a French phrase that means lack of faith. Accordingly, Jews claim the same thing as Christians. So does pious Islamists who assume that men outweigh women in terms of hygiene, and mental and corporal ability. They base their judgments on menstruation and some preachers’ sayings. Furthermore, the recipes used by women to beautify themselves or to heal casual sicknesses are not wanted by men. They send out a stink smells. But this does not mean that women have poor standards of a hygienist.

            The standing point of outside observers is completely different from the one of the target or observed people. To the people of Golf and some other countries, Moroccan women are prostitutes. The European and American people believe that Muslims are terrorists and their wives are fortune tellers and sorceresses. I should admit that there is prostitution and sorcery in Morocco and so is in all over the world. But the degree varies from one country to another. The outsiders tend to over generalize to the extent that quick judgments on women on the street overflow. Because of this overgeneralization girls in the street face sexual harassment from Moroccan and tourist who fail to distinguish between innocent and prostitutes.

              The first thing a visitor may notice on Moroccan women is art. They are rather than men artists in their society. The Arabic and especially the Amazigh women shape the Moroccan identity per se. They decorated their faces with tattoo dyed their hands and feet with henna and painted their faces with saffron. They also embroider their clothes and scarves and head coverings brightly colored arabesque motifs. They sew their clothes by themselves. They are creative in essence that they find solutions to small troubles they encounter in life.

                 There are many characteristics but I will just these few ones. First, most of them are talkative especially when they met in ceremony where there are only females. Secondly, they are shy and easy-going. They tend to believe things at first time. Hence they spread rumors and new incidents. In addition, in everyday life, women use all the tricky means to get their needs. Sometimes they achieve their needs on the expense of means and values.

                A big discrepancy is clearly seen however in some stereotypes on Moroccan women. An example would be, if a woman is characterized by foxiness then she is cleaver. Her mental capabilities are great since she can deceive smart people. Another discrepancy is that women are deemed to be untidy and not clean. But, they pass all day long doing homework, cleaning, ironing, washing clothe and catering for their offsprings. Women are the driving force for a nation’s development. If a mother, sister, cousin and daughter are very weak in all domains no nation will develop because Women are half of the society.

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