عيد ميلاد سعيد سيدي الرئيس

Happy Birthday Mr. President

When I arrived in Beirut a week after the 2008 Presidential Election, I was greeted by Obama smiling at me from nearly every cover on the magazine stand.  People cheerily shouted ‘Obama’ as my obviously western friends and I walked around Beirut and Damascus.  In shops and restaurants, my being an American was met with only warmth.  Thank you, Mr. President, for many things, the least of which is making my trip to the Middle East more pleasant than it would have been under Bush.