The Importance of Marking Days [Archives:2001/10/Focus]

Mohammed Khidhr 
Yemen Times 
Humans are destined all their life to work hard and struggle in order to secure their living and produce, otherwise their life is meaningless. They have to toil all their days and nights to attain that end. Each community is an integrated unit whose sections are interdependent. But in the long run man has discovered that to continue this fashion his life has become so monotonous and barren and also meaningless, as is the case if he sits idle. He has realized that he needs leisure times to break the monotony of continued labor. He has then to do something to provide a variety for his life. Therefore man pondered of fixing certain occasions as days to celebrate and to spend his times in a way quite different from those of his work. Times he thinks when he throws away the burdens of everyday toils. 
Both individuals and communities have decided to mark certain happy occasions pertaining to community or individual achievements that consequently created anniversaries, such as birthdays, wedding days, founding anniversary days…etc. On such occasions people would celebrate the happiness of that anniversary, remember the changes and consequences that followed the happening of that event in their life, what they have achieved during the period dividing that event and the present time and what to do in future before observing the following anniversary. That time is allotted to leisure and pleasure. It is like a very beautiful green oasis amidst the barren desert of their life. 
These thoughts and meditations came across my mind in the wake of the celebration the Yemen Times held at the Sheraton Hotel in Sana’a on 27th February evening marking its 10th founding anniversary and entering its 11th year. The occasion has brought together a kaleidoscopic number of guests from various sections of community and professions, Yemenis, Arabs and friendly people living in this hospitable country. The festivity was a few hours time deducted from the toilsome life where we have met colleagues and friends we could not be able to do without this occasion. After some introductory welcoming words by the Chief Editor Mr Walid al-Saqqaf who did not miss the opportunity of remembering the founder of the newspaper the late Dr Abdulaziz al-Saqqaf, we gathered at beautifully arranged tables chatting and exchanging nice talks. We got acquainted with people whom we did not know before and thus gained new acquaintants and friends. Everything has gone smoothly and nicely and that has added to the happiness of the occasion. I wish happy returns of such festivities and greater and ever success to the newspaper and its hard-working staff. 
On our part we pledge to exert more efforts to develop for the better our work, maintain our independent policy in conveying facts to our readers and in participating in the development and progress of our society and country and establishing good and profitable relations with our brethren Arabs and friends. 

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