Sacrifice is the tunnel of hope

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Sacrifice means a gesture of giving up something that you love and possess for the sake of others’ happiness or God’s happiness, Every human sacrifice every day by waking up and going to work, work hard to make money and by food to help him/ herself and their families exposing themselves to the danger of covid and other dangers. Many who sacrifice their time to feed the hungry, orphans and those in need? Others do it because to them it is their calling.

Sacrifice is being willing to give up something good for something better.

Life is full of boundless possibilities, but in order to transform a possibility into a reality we have to choose, sacrificing the many in order to attain the one. Nothing is gained without something relinquished.

Sacrifice has meaning only in the context of a goal, dream or mission. In pursuing these, we often face obstacles which require us to forfeit physical or emotional comfort in the service of something that matters more. Often, the greater the dream or vision, the greater the shared sacrifice required to attain it. Sacrifice is easier when we stay focused on what we are choosing rather than what we are giving up.

Many people leave their families and countries to go and work abroad just to make end of meet and save some money to send it back home like what I see in many Filipino workers , Indians , Bangladeshi, Latin Americans , Africans and others who sacrifice so much to travel far for the sake of sending some money back home .

For those people I send my sincere respect and applause to you for your sacrifice as you are truly the kind of people that God wants on this earth. Many of you go to faraway lands get discriminated against because of your background, color, culture or faith. Some of you get raped, killed, exploited ,cheated by those contractors and used like a working horse , some of you work in sweatshops, others are giving no salaries for months and when they ask about their rights they get arrested and sent home.

I know this as I am like you, once my family was very rich and comfortable but very kind. My father was arrested and put in political prison of no fault of his own, just because he was working with the president of Iraq back in 1956. He was the royal family portrait painter and got arrested because the new government thought that he was part of the royal propaganda. They put him in prison then they ask him if he can work with the new government as a painter so he can use his skill as an artist in exchange for his freedom.

They asked him to be the new president painter and in charge of the new military museum of art and technology as he was a civil engineer and an artist who graduated in the UK, and Italy. The president at that time from 1958 to 1962 used my father to make great peace of arts for the country and for his own family .

Then a new nationalist government came to power killing the previous president and most of his government and of course arrested my father because of his work and art and charged him with using art as a propaganda for the previous regime and put my father in the political prison for 5 years with torture in the first 2 years.

My father's job and art brought him agony and misery , artists were arrested and sometimes killed. And after while the new government ask my father if he want to work with them, he politely refused and told them why and he said I can help you with my skill in the prison as an artist’s so he did and they made his prison more comfortable, gave him a larger single sale with toilet and he was free to walk in the prison garden and have more freedom than others, they gave him more visitation rights so we can go and see him and small allowance so he can give to my mom.

The government took my entire father's assets, his art office, his bank account, his savings, his small company (Soap Company) and all that he had, making us so poor and moved to a smaller place with no government assistant at all.

My mother and all of us have to do small work to help and make some money to pay our bills and food. My mother was washing clothes and did some ironing so most of the middle glass neighbors used to send us the clothes so it was a good start , and my brothers and I washed cars, sold ice-cream, worked in small stores and we gave our earnings to our mother.

At that time I didn’t question anyone at all because my mom told me it is our destiny and God has control and he did this so we learn a lesson not to work or involved with politics and not to be their tool and slave ourselves for them . God is in control, so I never question the stupidity of our government and the inhuman way of treating people, and the undemocratic way of treating appositions.

We woke up early in the morning, worked and then went to school after. I never ever thought I would earn a degree . I had a big dream but the degree earning seems so far and so expensive that I almost gave up on it , as I have to work to support my sisters and my mother.

I have 6 sisters and 4 brothers. So from that time until now I have been helping them for the last 40 years. I made a promise to my mother that I will never ever abnded my sisters and other brothers .Years went by and I managed to leave the country , work and suffer in the labour market and learn other languages in Greece, Germany, and other countries until I managed to migrate to Canada back in 1979 .

From that time I divided my time to work, earn to pay my bills and save some to send to my parents and sisters, save some to go school, learn English in a night school. Until I managed to Graduate and got better jobs and kept going with work, education and helping my family, sacrificing my time to make sure that my sisters and brothers will get a better future.

Until all my sisters and brothers graduated and got their degrees and away from poverty, I saw them improve and they have their own families and children, houses and great husbands and wife’s. For me it was a satisfaction of my sacrifice, my sisters went to have a PhD in math and statistics, one MSc in administration, one an engineer, and one became a lawyer, other a biologist, and one an anthropologist. My brother had his MSc in Political science and anthropology . Another civil engineer who went to the USA and one got shot and killed by Iranians in Iraq he was a petroleum engineer.

Sam later died in the US 2001, he died a free man in the US, leaving behind his 3 handsome boys and his Romanian wife. Second brother was shot dead in Baghdad leaving his Polish fiancé behind.

My sister who holds the PhD and was working with the Saddam government left with her husband to Turkey and retired in Turkey. The lawyer's sister also used to work with the Saddam government moved to Jordan and retired with her family in the Kingdome Jordan. And the rest were scattered around with their families as Iraq was and still is in turmoil and bad politics, corruption still grip the country destroying lives and hopes.

Those evil governments and outside influence after money and power in the name of God controlling the mass and the people , killing anybody who is against them . It is worse than North Korea, China, Russia, and Indian governments, who are governing with iron fist, and brainwash, arrest and kill minorities.

 Iraq now is in the bottom list of poor, corrupt, ill managed, and underdeveloped country in the world .Because the people who run it are so stupid, appointed by outside forces, uses religion as a control method and cheat the elections and kill those who stand against them .Uses threats against all those who say otherwise.

They turned the country to a terrorist hub in the region that once was one of the greatest 13 countries in the world in terms of economy, progress, jobs, human dignity, science and technology, infrastructure and the sky was the limit, until division, war and corrupt politics brought Iraq to its knee.

With that millions were killed, raped and put in war camp by Iran, usa, Uk, Australia, many killing and rape took place in those camps by the foreign army. People who were lucky and ran away to other countries now sacrifice a lot to learn and work to send money home like I did.

When my mother passed away the last thing she said was send my regard to Saad (Steve)-myself. Tell him I love him and God bless you for all your help and then she closed her eyes forever. It was the worst day in my life one I got the news back in 1997.

My dad called me in 2003 and told me that he feels like his time has come, and that he wanted to talk to me and thank me for all my sacrifice to the family. I told him not to say that dad, only God knows the future.

My sacrifice is nothing compared to you and my mom, I told him. He gave me some instructions and we talked for 1 hour then he said goodbye, 2 days later he passed away from a healthy person to the grave, he passed away with a heart attack. Art was his life and it was his curse at the same time. My parents are both buried in the same cemetery with my other brother. We all sacrificed in different ways.

Moses, Jonathan, Ishmael, lot, Noah, Jesus, Mohammed, and many others God’s messengers , and prophets had sacrificed and went through a great deal of sacrifice to bring the message of justice, kindness, fairness, humanity and work ethics to those kings and Faros of the earth.

One thing in common among them all is not the ten commandments, not the just to worship and pray to one God, not to give your power or your money but to free mankind from bandage and slavery, free to choice their faith in one God, to let the people go with dignity, improve people lives, spread kindness and respect and denounce slavery, torture, rape, and later when human gain some freedom and run away from the aggressors God gave them the Commandments, the Torah, the new testament ,and the Quran ( the final testament)  .

But even now because of power, politics, and money we see faith fighting faith, religion fighting religion, sect fighting others, my God is better than your God! pointing fingers and not facts , shameful behaviour at many churches that accused of children sexual abuse , slaving women, and changing the law of God to fit their own culture and making more Gods beside the one and the only God! After all the sacrifices that those messengers gave humans are still trying and working hard to change the truth.

Sacrifice is part of who we are as a human. When John of the whale run away from God and told him to go and find some other man, not me .God had chosen him because he knows what is the best for him and others,but he ran until the whale swallowed him and we know the rest of the story as later he came back and saw his nation in faith with God and God used him to bring many to the faith in One God. 

You cannot run away from destiny as God is in Control, and all you can do is to sacrifice your time, your money, your efforts and sometimes your life to bring the positive change to yourself, your family, and your community .All that starts with one step, one move, one idea and one small act of kindness toward others.

Some people are always ready to do whatever it will take to see others prosper in their lives. Some are also willing to sacrifice their lives for others because of the affection and love they have for one another and humanity. When you are choosing to sacrifice for someone, then it is not by any obligation, but that is something, which is done purely from the depth of your heart, and God will reward for this kindness and self sacrifice.

Once Abo Baker who was prophet Mohammed best friends, and later his first Khalifa were extremely rich before Islam and he spend everything he had to help the poor, liberate the slaves faithful and buy their freedom from their aggressive owners,until he had nothing but his clothes and good health and that was blessing for him as he spend his money to do good and later got rewarded in earth and will be rewarded in heaven.

Sacrifice is the ability to protect others for their sake. Not yours. It has flaws if you think selfishly. It has no flaws if you think selflessly: if you were given the chance to sacrifice yourself for others would you? Push fear of death away and return to the motion of the heart. Why do I say this?

It is because sacrifice is a mortal choice and act like the falling soldiers who died protecting their countries, honors and homeland against aggressors like Hitler of German, Mussolini of Italy, The catholic church in the old days who were killing scientists, French and England aggression on other countries, Stalin and the communist parties in China, Japan aggression, and lately Iran and others who export terrorism and destroying humankind

The word sacrifice means that something is given up in order to benefit another person. Sacrifices can be placed into categories based upon what is being given up in order to benefit someone else. Cleopatra sacrificed her own by sleeping with the roman emperor and later became the lover of his general Antonio just to save Egypt from takeover by the roman army by war and aggression.     

There are sometimes various serious consequences which follow a sacrifice, and some people might have to live with the consequences of their sacrifice for their entire life. Moreover, if you are choosing to do sacrifice, then it should not be for any public popularity gains but because you’re inner self-wants to do it.

If you are doing it for public popularity then later you would regret, and your real intentions will be known to all. Your image will be hampered, and people will dislike your guts. So whenever you are doing sacrifice, then you must be sure that you are ready and prepared. You should sacrifice by your heart.

Sacrifice is not made when someone is expecting thanks in return or forcing you to do something. It is a feeling of instinct. They are made because some people decide to make a difference in someone’s life. Our soldiers and freedom fighters have made huge sacrifices in their lives, and so we are enjoying our freedom today. But many times we misuse our freedom and harm others, which is wrong. 

So try to help whenever you can and then proceed in your way happily. Doing sacrifice gives a good feeling and happiness and the person for whom you do sacrifice will always show gratitude towards you even if you are not present in this world. Remember a good deed never goes in vain.

 Parents strive to make kid’s lives better before they come into this world and continue to do that till their last breath. The sacrifices they make for their children are innumerable just to name few like ;

Time

after becoming a parent a couple’s life is centered on their little bundle of joy. They clean, cook, teach, wash and iron our clothes, take us to school, feed us and spend most of their time finding ways to protect us and keep us secure.

Emotions

are one of the biggest sacrifices someone makes as a parent. Emotional Quotient (EQ) is more important than Intelligence Quotient (IQ). An emotionally stable person is happier than someone who’s not. 

Money

Parents spend money to fulfill all the kid’s needs right from childhood. They provide the best education possible and sometimes go beyond their limits to give kids better opportunities. That's why I feel that whatever I did to them is not even enough to repay them for the protection, love, worries about us.

I saw my mom crying alone so many times, I used to watch her from a distance then i asked her, why are you crying mom? She said she didn’t cry for herself. She was sad and worried about us, wondering what will happen if she died? But you told me that God is in control and he will protect us, I asked? We are only a human son and our hearts give us doubt sometimes ,but my tears are like prayers to God so he can protect you all after I am gone. She said.

Relationships

the first relationship that gets affected with the birth of a baby are the parents themselves. The spouse is now the first mom or dad. The priority list changes and suddenly baby tops the list of all relationships. Some friends and family members drift apart from parents emotionally. Life is now defined by relations that are important to parents and not individuals. At times, parents may lose a treasured relation of lifetime because of a kid's misbehavior.

 Personal life

A kid demands undivided attention till s/he becomes independent. By that time the age and financial independence is over for the parents. Post retirement they do find time for themselves, but the golden days of adulthood are lost in creating a life for kids than themselves. My experience is to help my siblings to get rid of poverty and free themselves from working with low wages without degrees and now they are better-off and helping the 3rd generation.

Freedom

our parents curb all their freedom of choices for us. It can be freedom to take a job their heart desires, to live in the city they like, to pursue their hobbies, to spend money the way they want. But they give up all choices for us. So I decided to give mine for them and that’s why I immigrated. .

Social life

The social life of parents takes a backseat after the baby. Once the baby grows up, schooling becomes the epicenter of parents to expand their social life. 

Career

Majority of the times a mother sacrifices. Biologically having a major part in childbirth, she puts everything on hold, including her professional life. Naturally father has to give his career more importance to fulfill family needs. Many parents take up jobs that allow them to spend more time with kids.

Food

Parents usually give up on their favorite foods to inculcate healthy eating in kids. Going to a restaurant that everyone else but the kid likes; giving up a major portion of everyone’s favorite food to the kid to relish. Some less well to do parents have to even give up a one-time meal to feed their kids.

Desires

starting from their wardrobe, to the house decor, to the car, all are decided to suit the kid’s comfort or later are ruled by her choices. Holiday plans are decided by the kid's education. Later parents are dependent on kids post retirement they even have to shift city to be with them. It’s very difficult, leaving the place they spend their lives and adjusting in a new setup in old age.

Parents have unconditional love for kids. With old age parents become our kids and need love and care. Remember, a parent never retires. Maybe their words of wisdom don’t hold relevance in today’s world, but experience is the best teacher. 

After all sacrifices if a parent doesn’t even get love and respect, imagine the trauma they’ll suffer. The world is becoming smaller and we need to move places to grow professionally. The bible says in different verses ;

For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship

To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.

So God want you to sacrifice your time to worship him, pray to him, stay in faith and be strong against temptations, study the holy books and seek knowledge instead of sacrifice material things to him, and he ask us to be more spiritual in nature, kind and look for each other interests and not just for yours.and he focus on justice, good judgment, righteousness behaviour toward others as this is the sacrifice that he wants as it come from your kindness and aim to help others and be just and fair .

We don’t need to drag our parents in their old age everywhere. Just genuine love and being there when they need us is more than sufficient for them to feel proud of their upbringing. We never put our parents in senior homes. home is shameful to do that. They live with us and or with other kids and all the brothers and sisters chip in to help. So the sacrifice continues.

Thank you for reading, be proud of yourself if you are one of those who sacrifice your money, time, energy and self to improve the lives of others. Please visit my blog to read more articles at www.moleopedia.com

Steve Ramsey. Okotoks, Alberta .