This Substack newsletter from Blue Ear Books features occasional articles by authors of the books we publish, such as this one from Qaisar Shareef, author of When Tribesmen Came Calling, which includes an account of his time as Ukraine country head for Procter & Gamble Company from 1996 to 1998. This newsletter is free, but consider supporting our work with a modest paid subscription.
Quasar, not surprisingly this was both lovely and heartbreaking. For those of you who might want more of Qaisar’s beautiful prose, I recommend his book “When Tribesmen Came Calling” isbn 978-0-9990951-0-2. Thanks for sharing!
Gene, as Qaisar's editor and publisher I just want to thank you for your kind words. "When Tribesmen Came Calling" was a real labor of love on my part but especially on Qaisar's - working with him as an author set a high standard for Blue Ear Books titles that I'm proud of. And he has such interesting stories to tell!
Dear Qaiser, beautiful and lovely letter from the past. It's reflection of love you feel for the country and the pain when you see the worst human situation is created for innocent and adorable people of Ukraine for no reason. I guess in centuries it has been repeated and shown too much power of a nation is a curse for the rest of the people of the world. Aquilur Rahman
Thank you, Qaisar, for this very poignant, but - so valuable right now - balanced perspective. Yours is an important counterpoint to some of the more biased narratives circulating right now, and you keep your eyes on "the people" because they are who matter most. For those of us who have had the honour to serve Ukraine - and also Russia - through P&G, this horrific situation has a very human face, and it is the face of smart, hard-working and committed colleagues, who are sons, daughters and parents, just like us. I think of them ceaselessly and the suffering in this conflict is not abstract, but my sense of helplessness is crushing. I found this source helpful to identify some small concrete ways to maybe make a difference https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/ways-to-help-ukraine-conflict/
Thank you Lindsay for reading my blog and for your comments. Indeed at this time my sole focus is on the impact on the people of Ukraine - regular citizens as they say, who are caught up in a horrible conflict. Many of them are my friends and former colleagues. There is enough finger pointing and geopolitical pontificating going on. I just wanted to write abut the wonderful people I have worked with. Too often in these conflicts the humanity of the people who are effected is ignored. But this is not the time to bring up examples of how the media should and should not be reporting about it. I continue to pray for the people of Ukraine. I also share your sense of helplessness about it.
It is interesting to hear a different perspective about Ukraine. I was part of the 173rd Airborne Brigade and responded to the incident in Crimea in 2014. When we arrived in Kyiv the city looked desolate. The buildings were falling apart, the infrastructure was crumbling and the municipal utilities were barely working. The base we were allowed to use had an old rusted rail line that hadn't functioned in many decades. We took showers that night and the water smelled, and two soldiers contracted Hepatitis. The local soldiers refused to train with us and spent their days drinking and sleeping. I saw no professionalism, motivation, or heart in any of the people meant to lead and support the community. It was an abandoned city, and a people that had given up.
Andrew thanks for your comment sharing your experience from 2014. I lived in Ukraine in the 1996-1998 period. I went back again to Kiev in 2006 for a few days and found much of the city beautifully restored. Much of that I assume has now been devastated.
Thanks for this informed remembrance, Qaisar - it's very moving in the present context. It's such a shame that Ukraine, and indeed all the world, are embarking on the Great Leap Backward. :(
Quasar, not surprisingly this was both lovely and heartbreaking. For those of you who might want more of Qaisar’s beautiful prose, I recommend his book “When Tribesmen Came Calling” isbn 978-0-9990951-0-2. Thanks for sharing!
Gene, as Qaisar's editor and publisher I just want to thank you for your kind words. "When Tribesmen Came Calling" was a real labor of love on my part but especially on Qaisar's - working with him as an author set a high standard for Blue Ear Books titles that I'm proud of. And he has such interesting stories to tell!
Dear Qaiser, beautiful and lovely letter from the past. It's reflection of love you feel for the country and the pain when you see the worst human situation is created for innocent and adorable people of Ukraine for no reason. I guess in centuries it has been repeated and shown too much power of a nation is a curse for the rest of the people of the world. Aquilur Rahman
So true. Thank you for your kind words.
Thank you for this article. Its really heart breaking what's happening there.
We learn from history that we don't learn from history
Thank you, Qaisar, for this very poignant, but - so valuable right now - balanced perspective. Yours is an important counterpoint to some of the more biased narratives circulating right now, and you keep your eyes on "the people" because they are who matter most. For those of us who have had the honour to serve Ukraine - and also Russia - through P&G, this horrific situation has a very human face, and it is the face of smart, hard-working and committed colleagues, who are sons, daughters and parents, just like us. I think of them ceaselessly and the suffering in this conflict is not abstract, but my sense of helplessness is crushing. I found this source helpful to identify some small concrete ways to maybe make a difference https://www.globalcitizen.org/en/content/ways-to-help-ukraine-conflict/
Thank you Lindsay for reading my blog and for your comments. Indeed at this time my sole focus is on the impact on the people of Ukraine - regular citizens as they say, who are caught up in a horrible conflict. Many of them are my friends and former colleagues. There is enough finger pointing and geopolitical pontificating going on. I just wanted to write abut the wonderful people I have worked with. Too often in these conflicts the humanity of the people who are effected is ignored. But this is not the time to bring up examples of how the media should and should not be reporting about it. I continue to pray for the people of Ukraine. I also share your sense of helplessness about it.
Thank you Gene for your kind comments.
Thanks Lisa and Dennis. Indeed a sad situation in Ukraine. Praying for the wonderful people there.
Have I ever seen such tragedy and sadness before. It's really so painful ; however, it's life and that of course does not mean to stay idly by, right?
It is interesting to hear a different perspective about Ukraine. I was part of the 173rd Airborne Brigade and responded to the incident in Crimea in 2014. When we arrived in Kyiv the city looked desolate. The buildings were falling apart, the infrastructure was crumbling and the municipal utilities were barely working. The base we were allowed to use had an old rusted rail line that hadn't functioned in many decades. We took showers that night and the water smelled, and two soldiers contracted Hepatitis. The local soldiers refused to train with us and spent their days drinking and sleeping. I saw no professionalism, motivation, or heart in any of the people meant to lead and support the community. It was an abandoned city, and a people that had given up.
Andrew thanks for your comment sharing your experience from 2014. I lived in Ukraine in the 1996-1998 period. I went back again to Kiev in 2006 for a few days and found much of the city beautifully restored. Much of that I assume has now been devastated.
Thanks for this informed remembrance, Qaisar - it's very moving in the present context. It's such a shame that Ukraine, and indeed all the world, are embarking on the Great Leap Backward. :(
Thanks Qaisar for sharing your unique perspective on this. I appreciate you reminding us all that the actions in Ukraine impact real people.