beyond the screen.

The world's a funny place. You see it, hear it, love it, talk to it and are a part of it, yet you will never understand how it truly works.

It's Friday. I just got back from campus and I'm sitting on my bed with my computer propped up on my lap. As CBC's video player loads up on the screen, I take a sip from my bottle of juice and take off my socks. It's usually what I do on Fridays, I'll not watch The National all week, but instead cram an entire week's worth of news into one day.

The player loads and after watching two minutes of the 'surprising' non-confidence vote drama on Parliament Hill, I switch over and feast my eyes on Peter Mansbridge instead. They play clips from stories that are currently happening; Libya, the tsunami and fears of radiation in Japan, the death of the fire fighters in Southern Ontario and the campaign business.

And then Yemen comes on the screen.

There are reports of unrest and protests in Yemen. It's not only the capital, Sana'a but in all the other governaretes too. The protestors are upset, disappointed and angry about the 20 year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. There are photos, videos and reports that show the Yemenis as hordes of angry crowds that yell and look dirty amongst all the dust. 

They're portrayed as a yet another Middle Eastern country that is calling for the fall of their leader. There are images of men protesting in the street, yelling for change and while the rest of the world simply sits back, sympathize and pretend like they understand what is going on and says statements like "the situation is unacceptable." I honestly wonder how much the world knows about middle easterners and the lives they lead in their countries.

Why do I care and how do I know?

I lived in Yemen for almost three months, so I care. I care very much.

I see a different Sana'a than the one they stream online or broadcast on TV. I cannot speak to the situation that is happening right now, but I can say that the people I met and the Yemen that I experienced is very different compared to the one that people are led to see on their screens.

Living in the heat of the western universe, we're always shown all the images and clips, and made to believe that the men dressed in long brown tunics with beards and turbans on their heads are always "going against the man." But believe me or not, these men are some of the most respectful and hospitable people I have ever met.

When I saw videos of people dying, and blood on mud baked walls, I think about the lovely old man outside the Arabic school I learned at who used to give me extra salt on my french fries. I think about the little boys who used to play outside our house and I wonder if they are within the masses of people who are protesting on the streets. When I hear protestors screaming "Allahuakbar" through my earphones, I think about the gorgeous Quranic recitations that used to float out of mosques and if they've used their voice for other purposes.

There are so many things I wish I could back and see in Yemen. I need to know that the people who opened their houses and lives to me and my friends four years ago are alive, well and safe. Yemenis love their country. They are patriotic people and I know that there must be an important enough reason that they are protesting against their government. They are peaceful people, at least the ones I met were.

It sad and heartbreaking to know that this beautiful country is being seen as violent and harsh by the rest of the world. 

There are gorgeous mountains, breathtaking valleys and welcoming people in Yemen, I only wish that the rest of the world would be able to understand its beauty even in the worst circumstances.

The world is a funny place, I've seen it, heard it, talked to it and loved a lot of it, yet I still don't know how it works. 

But I know how Yemen works, and it's not what you see on your television screen.

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