Ten thousand four hundred fifty two

Ask a bunch of Lebanese about the size of their country's population, and you will no doubt get widely varied numbers. Not surprising, given the almost 90 years that have come and gone since the last formal census of the population, and the wide influx and outflux of people that accompanied them.

But ask them about the size of Lebanon, and chances are most, if not all, will proudly blurt the magic digits: Ten thousand four hundred fifty two.

Ten thousand four hundred fifty two units of something deeply meaningful to each and every one of those God knows how many individuals that call themselves Lebanese. Indeed, not withstanding the chaos, uncertainty, loss, pain and struggles each of us has inevitably known and lived at some point in our lives as a result of being Lebanese, these always remain, as if by Godly edict, ten thousand four hundred fifty two units of bountiful earth and heavenly charm, of rich history and colorful heritage, abiding traditions and enduring family ties, of optimism, creativity, resilience and love of life... ten thousand four hundred fifty two units of home.

This mixed media piece is a tribute to those few square kilometers of earth that must have once wandered from the sky and lost their way back.

"May there be abundance of grain in the land; on the tops of the mountains may it wave; may its fruit be like Lebanon; and may men blossom forth from the cities like the grass of the field!" Psalms 72:16