By Sami Moubayed

Nearly 20 years ago, I was a student at the American School in Damascus. We had to study US history and memorise parts of the US Constitution.

Running out of time, I (shamefully) tried to cheat before the exam, by scribbling the Preamble of the Constitution on the palm of my left hand, and the 10th Amendment on my right.

I was caught doing that, had to wash my hands, and forced to sit there for the remainder of the day, memorising chunks of the US Constitution.

I had to learn it the hard way. I eventually did, and grew up proud of my strong command of US history. I believed in US principles, democracy, opportunity, and the right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness".

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