Greetings future citizen,

                  This may be strange, but the Gods have informed me to write this before my passing and to get this sent to you. So, your question is how has delivering messages progressed since the ancient 'Greece' and what are the differences between then and delivering messages to the society we are in now? One thing I can make certain is that I did not have to run all the way from Athens to Tucson to tell you this. I am very grateful for the advances made in the future.

In the primary source “Herodotus Book VI: Chapter 94-140,” it states, “And first, while they were yet in the city, the generals sent as a herald to Sparta Pheidippides, an Athenian, and one, moreover, that was a runner of long distances and made that his calling,” (Herodotus Book VI: Chapter 94-140, 105). In this quote, the book is explaining that I, Pheidippides, felt honored and that it would be best if I were sent as the messenger for Athens to run to Sparta and deliver the message about the war. In comparison to the society you are in, no one usually sees somebody running across a country or across different states to deliver an important message about a war. Normally, messages like those are delivered on the news or can simply be seen on social media; however, some people can still deliver important messages by foot if the distances are short. For example, if somebody needed help with getting their car starting to run again, or quickly shut off a pipe burst, they can quickly run to their neighbors and see if they were to help. The difference between myself and the example of someone running to their neighbor is that I had to run long-distance while the neighbor only had to run around 100 feet from their house.

In the secondary source “Herodotos and Hemerodromoi: Pheidippides' Run from Athens to Sparta in 490 BC from Historical and Physiological Perspectives,” the author writes, “This is an enormous amount of energy to take in on the go; and coordinating the energy intake so that it interfered as little as possible with the ability to run must have been a real challenge,” (Christensen 163). In this quote, the authors surprisingly predicted the amount of time I ran and the amount of energy intake I had to take in order to be able to run from Athens to Sparta, and back to Athens again. I am very surprised they calculated this even though they were not physically there with me. In the other secondary source “Run, Pheidippides, Run! The story of the Battle of Marathon,” the author believes and comes to a conclusion, similar to what the authors had for the first secondary source, that it is nearly impossible for myself to run to long of a distance in the short amount of time he ran for (Grogan 189). Inferring that the Athenian officials must have considered how much I had to run in order for me to die right when I arrived back in Athens, this must have pushed the Athenians to come up with better ways to deliver messages and constantly advance how they do it which leads to the conclusion that my death contributes to how advanced the messaging technology is today.

            I hope this gives you and your fellow peers a better understanding of the ancient world by knowing how important messages were delivered, and how they have increased their technology of delivering messages in order to prevent people from dying right after delivering the message like I unfortunately did. This should give you enough insight on why they decided to change their ways in delivering messages. Understanding ancient ‘Greece’'s ways of advancing messaging would better understand human experience in general by understanding why technology is still currently advancing when delivering messages to friends, family, etc. If you have any more questions, you're going to have to run 150 miles in two days in order to summon me so that I can answer them.

May the Gods be with You,

Pheidippides

07/02/2021

Mahnoor my Love, 

It’s been exactly one year since we had our Nikkah. The past year has been a challenging one. Corona, lockdown, long distance, Visa issues, planning, time management. Our ship was also rocked by a few storms but Alhamdulilah we have overcome every challenge that has come towards us and Insha’Allah we shall continue to overcome any other challenge that may come in the future. I think this is how a true character of a relationship is built, this is how you develop a long lasting bond because nothing feels better than overcoming a challenge together like a team and surviving. 

We have both made mistakes and learnt from them. That’s exactly what a strong team does, always makes amendments and bounces back strongly. I am proud to say I have a wonderful life partner who is giving  their all. In this year I have seen that you have been very consistent with your efforts, Love, kindness and the way you conduct yourself with me. You have been very accommodating and adaptable. 

I think it’s great how we are both consistently working on ourselves for the benefit of our future. May Allah make us successful in making us the best for each other, Aameen. Although long distance is a little painful It’s also good because we have this opportunity to understand each other deeper and have the opportunity to alter anything that might bother us before we officially start living together. If we can clear out all the niggles beforehand then we can spend more of our time enjoying life with each other once we’re together. 

I am so grateful to have you as my life partner. Everyday bit by bit you demonstrate that you are the right person for me. If I was to list all the compliments that come to mind when I think of you I would have to write a book of many pages but for now I want to acknowledge some of my favourite ones. First of All I think you’re very beautiful Masha’Allah, everything about you is beautiful, your warm mellow ambience, your velvety skin, your glowy eyes, your gorgeous smile, your soothing voice, your delicate lips, your gentle touch, every feature of yours head to toe, hair to nails are a work of art and I am always in awe when I look at you Masha’Allah. I could never get bored staring at you, especially when you smile. You’re not just beautiful from the outside, you have exhibited many times what a graceful soul you are. You are ethical, you have moral values, you are caring, you’re committed, your mindset is progressive, you’re intelligent, creative and mature and the best thing about you is you are humble in understanding that like everyone else there is still a lot to learn in life. With you, I look forward to growing and evolving into an even better human being. 

Everyone has flaws, I have mine too and because I love you genuinely I am working on my self to get rid of these flaws as soon as possible. The beginning of anything big is usually messy and takes time but once the foundation is set you can even build the worlds tallest building on it. So I think this year has been a foundation year for us both. We both got to discover each other a little deeper, we both learnt more about each other, we both identified areas we both need to work on, we both acknowledged our shortcomings and we both want to become the best for each other. I think our communication is excellent and that is going to be the key to a successful marriage. I look forward to growing a solid, loving, healthy relationship with you. A relationship filled with warmth, positivity, growth, love & care. My intentions for you are pure my Jaan. I love you so much Mahnoor. I mean every word I’m writing here. May Allah bless you with a long happy life. I will do whatever is required to be the best Husband possible. Whether it’s watching make up tutorials with you, being your 007 bodyguard while taking you to the washwoom, chilling with you underneath your fort, munching snacks with you at 3am or taking 20 selfies at each destination we visit around the World. I just cannot wait to experience life with you. I wanna shower you with the most beautiful moments. If you ever feel I can improve on something please feel free to let me know. My goal is to make your life as enjoyable as possible. In return all I expect from you is real support, honesty and loyalty. I cannot wait to be with you. I miss everything about you and it honestly sucks being far from you. This corona, long distance, random storms have not really allowed us to officially start our lives together yet but baby the day it begins Im gonna love you so hard and live happily every after Insha’Allah!

P.s I really wish I was there to celebrate today with you but we will need to wait just a little while longer. Stay strong my Jaan. In the meanwhile I have sent you a few packages filled with love. I hope you like them, Happy 1st Year Anniversary My Mahnoor, My Jaan, My Love.

I love you ??

Yours, 

Omar