Before revealing how my family has been affected by the current situation in Lebanon, I need to explain what the Lebanese people have become, due to centuries of continuous internal and external political conflict.

Some patients criticize their doctors for being too detached. They say physicians have become numb and cannot identify with the pain death brings. This might sound very out of place, but has anyone ever taken a second to think about what the doctor goes through when he has to inform one family after the other that he had failed to save their daughter or son?

People criticize the Lebanese for being inhumane. A bomb explodes. Hundreds die. Only hours later, people go about their daily routines. Life resumes like nothing had ever happened. In fact, in the 2006 war against Israel, hundreds of civilians were spotted pulling injured people out of the rubble and rebuilding what was destroyed while bombs still dropped from the sky. Only minutes and hours after the missiles fell, the Lebanese were scattered all over the streets helping those in need and salvaging whatever remains they could find. There was nothing to be worried about. This was all a part of the routine that they have been living for decades now: wait, damage, rebuild … wait, damage, rebuild. Every bullet fired, bomb exploded and civilian killed has chipped away a little piece of these peoples’ fear of death until there was nothing left. Can you blame them?

People have often come up to me with looks of sympathy and concern asking if my country is okay. I could see the disappointment in their faces when they did not get the dramatic answer they were looking for. Am I insensitive? It is not surprising anymore. I live constantly expecting something to happen in Lebanon. I have never experienced life in Lebanon expecting peace. That is a foreign concept. I do not even know what it is like. In fact, neither did my mom nor my dad. There is always something threatening the safety of my country. Living life expecting nothing to go wrong and expecting to have just another normal day is a blessing that I think many take for granted.

Stress is a major problem in Lebanon. People are always on their toes. If it's not war, it’s the terrible economy. That is why we, the Lebanese people, take any opportunity to have fun very seriously and grab it by the horns. That is why we are known to be a fun and lively people. We have learned to live like there is no tomorrow.

The people of Beirut have been criticized for clubbing in the middle of a war. “Have you no sense of respect!?” we were asked. But what if tomorrow is our turn to be bombed?

My family lives with the utmost gratitude for every breath and every heartbeat. They are genuinely happy. That is what makes Lebanon special. That is why people are patriotic. That is why they refuse to leave. They have been given something to fight for. Their curse is, at the same time, their biggest blessing.