118 Pyramids Strong

Its quite mind boggling to think that 118 pyramids sprout on a land once inhabited by the greatest civilization seen by man. Despite the veil of the sand that covers most of Egypt, this land is one of true untapped potentials and treasures. As time passes and sand storms blow, we slowly begin to discover what lies in this land we take for granted. Just today, Egypt's land gives birth to a new Pyramid. Today, the legendary Zahi Hawas, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council on Antiquities, discovers another pyramid in Saqqara to tally the total number of pyramids in Egypt to 118. I remember first reading about Hawas in an edition of Discovery Kids back and hearing about my father work with him on the recovery of stolen Egyptian antiquities in the US back in the NYC days, but I never would have fathomed meeting the man himself in front of the Sphinx. He left the impression on me that he was always in a hurry to make more and more discoveries, but it was an privilege even having him take the time to chat with a bunch of kids about how rich their motherland is. This was during my excursion with the Egyptian American Group, a social organization composed of mainly of second generation Egyptian Americans. Since that moment, I'd been following Hawas' discoveries on the Discovery and History channels and he never fails to make me proud of the ancient heritage of my country.
Today, history will record the discovery of yet another pyramid of Egypt. This one dates back 4,300 years and was discovered near Saqqara's famous step pyramid, which I recently visited in the summer 2007. It is during this time that I was truly grasped by the idea that "man fears time, but time fears the Pyramids." The eternity of these magnificent structures is reminder of man's ingenuity and Egypt's longstanding position in the world.
The moral I'd like to take away from today's discovery is that Egypt is a gold mine with much more to discover than pyramids. Although Egypt's greateness may have waned since 7,000 years, it still has so much untapped potential that if realized could flourish an era as great as our forefathers. It is merely a matter of contemporary Egyptians realizing the greatness which defines their identity. It is for this reason that I am a faithful reader of Naghuib Mahfouz's early writings of Ancient Egypt. War at Thebes is a case in point, but there are so many more. This is a topic to divulge about in another entry, but I believe that once the Egyptians begin recognizing the eminence of their heritage and identity, only then will they be able to rise once more.