2011, A Memory From Lebanon  (c) Farah Mokhtareizadeh  by: Maya
Mikdashi  When the revolutions began in March of 2011, I was
envious. It is not easy to admit this. Back then, before the
revolutions turned bloody, before Libya and Bahrain and Syria
and before the continuation of a military state in Egypt, the
possibilities seemed contagious. But even then, while in the
fever of January, beneath a desire for revolution, I understood
that I would not see a similarly broad based and successful
uprising in Lebanon. Watching the swell of people in Tahrir
Square on television, I was envious of the memories they would
have of that moment. Where were you the night Mubarak was
finally overthrown? What were you doing when Ben Ali finally
boarded that plane? These “lightbulb memories,” translated into
Lebanese, usually refer to political assassinations, invasions,
and outbreaks of civil violence. Watching a million people
celebrate in Cairo, I understood that we in Lebanon can never
emulate the Tunisians or the Egyptians