It's over, sort of.

I can't begin to describe how I felt as I drove the munchkins to school when I heard a very brief radio announcement, "Osama bin Laden has been killed." And then, the radio went straight back to the music. I phoned my parents who knew why I was calling before I even said a thing, "Yes, it appears to be true." Wow. A moment I will never forget.

I don't rejoice over the death of any human being. However, I feel so strange (in a good way) knowing that this man who caused so much death, who caused so much prejudice to Muslims because some people thought he represented Islam, this man who forever changed how people react to those living in and coming from the Middle East is now gone.

Back in the home country, I remember seeing some Muslim women wearing head scarves, and other women would look at them with curiosity. But after 9/11, when I would be out doing the shopping and would see women in head scarves, other women would look at them with distrust and fear. The horrid actions of a small group of murderers led by bin Laden changed things overnight. Now, more than ever, there is a tremendous need for dialogue between those of different faiths and different backgrounds.

So now that bin Laden is gone, why worry about dialogue and education between people of different backgrounds and faiths? My mobile was ringing like crazy yesterday with friends who are now concerned about what's next. Some of these friends are American but most come from across the globe. But they are all concerned about 'what's next'. Their fears are honest and real. Do I fear? No, not really. There's just no point in wasting the energy. If I was really going to spend energy being fearful, than I'd move to some nice wooded place in the middle of 'no-where' (I kind of like the idea of Sweden - snow, good hiking) and live the life of a hermit. But rather than being fearful, I can do my best to be part of the dialogue. I can do my best to spread love and caring rather than hate.

So, it's over but only sort of.

Peace.

As a post-script: http://www.time.com/time/photogallery/0,29307,2068945_2271220,00.html Some U.S. based news sites are referring to bin Laden's hide-out as a 'mansion'. Yes, this is a big compound, but I would not use the American term of 'mansion' to describe it. But, it is still far from rough-living in a cave in a mountainside some where.