what's in a week

Exactly a week ago, I met a Moroccan gentleman at a cafe.  My friend introduced us, and we talked about Morocco.  He had left almost 40 years ago.  He said it was not the same  now.  He said when he was young, it was French, Jews, everyone mixing together.  He said these people, they are not Moroccan - they are coming from other countries and bringing their fundamentalism with them.  He's religious, and he's a Muslim, but he misses the Morocco he left, where there was more mixing of cultures and trust.

He expressed that the world was about to change.  He said that he'd soon be willing to go back.  He thought that the events in Tunisia were going to bring about a massive shift in the region.  He told me it would be quick and I would see.

I thought he was shockingly optimistic about the power of the populace.

Now I think he might be prescient.  The actions taken by people in this last week have been swift and vast and will demand great changes.  It seems as though positive change could occur throughout North Africa and the Middle East.  Perhaps that might lead to change further south.

For a moment, I thought, maybe Israel, a functioning democracy in the region, could actually take this opportunity to lend support to the change.

But that was just a dream I had.