Where is Qatar anyway?

The most common response I have had from people when I tell them that we are moving to Qatar is, "Where is Qatar, anyway?" (Second runner-up is "Qatar....isn't that in India?") Qatar is a small country in the Middle East (in the Persian Gulf.) It is approximately the size of Connecticut. Doha is its capital and the city we will be living in. For facts and figures about Qatar, visit the CIA World Fact Book website at: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/qa.html

The next two questions are always, "Is it safe?" and "Why in the world are you going?" The answer to the first question is easy: Yes, it is perfectly safe. The reality is that we live in a complicated world. Bad things happen everywhere. You could be shot by a gang in West Valley or hit by a bus in Provo. As kids, whenever we left the house, my mom would always tell us to be safe. We would roll our eyes and respond, "Mom, if it is my time to go, it is my time to go." She would then remind us that acting foolishly can result in "going before your time." Whenever something bad happens unexpectedly, it is natural human response to second guess the decisions that led up to the event. The important thing to remember is that we cannot live our lives "counseled by our fears." Bad things happen everywhere. Tragedy happens everywhere. Qatar is a very unique country with a different situation than its neighbors. It has great relations with the United States and other western countries. The US has a large air force base there. The 2006 Asia Olympics are being held there. The people are wonderful and very kind. In the grand scheme of things, I feel much safer living in Qatar than Los Angeles, D.C., or even West Valley, Utah.

Why are we going to Doha? I am currently working for the World Family Policy Center at Brigham Young University. In 2004, in celebration of the International Year of the Family, the WFPC in conjunction with the government of Qatar hosted a series of international family conferences. (This is why I went to Malaysia, Switzerland, Mexico, and Qatar in 2004.) At the final conference in Qatar, after the presentation of the Doha Declaration, the government there announced that they would be starting a new institute, "The Doha International Institute for Family Studies and Development." My current boss, Richard Wilkins, has been asked to be the Institute's first director. Marya Reed and I have been asked to come with him for the first year to get the new institute "up and running."

The last question people ask is, "What about Jon? Does he want to go? What is he going to do?" Jon is really excited about going. He has been extremely supportive. Once we arrive in Doha, he will most likely find a job, hopefully with the medical school there. He is also looking forward to spending a lot of time in the ocean. Jon is currently working on secondary applications for medical school, so we are just taking our plans for the future one month at a time.

We are excited to go and appreciate all the excitement and support from family and friends. We don't have an exact departure date yet, but it will be around January 4 - 8. More details to come.

--Emily