A Far Away Home (14 page)

Ali talked about his growing up in Sharidure and about his family in Muhshed. The
driver told Ali he was only going as far as Herat, but he knew lots of drivers who
made regular trips to Muhshed, and when they got to Heart, he found a truck leaving
the next morning for Muhshed.

At the Iranian border the guards waved the truck through. They seemed to know the
driver so Ali didn't even have to get
down. They soon drove into Tyabad, where they
had lunch. When Muhshed appeared on the horizon just before dark, Ali offered the
driver money, but he waved Ali on and said he appreciated the company. Ali climbed
down and waved as the truck pulled away. He was home again.

***

No one knew he was coming. He knocked on the door and waited. “Who is it?” It was
Nafisa's voice.

“It's me, Ali. I'm home.”

There was a running sound on the other side of the door. Nafisa, Hassan and Shireen
all were there. Hassan and Shireen jumped up and down saying, “Baba, Baba! (Daddy,
Daddy)” Ali and Nafisa hugged and were both almost knocked over by Hassan and Shireen.

“Are you tired? Would you like some tea? How about some aash? We just had some.”
Nafisa was so glad to have him home.

“Yes, to all of those. I haven't had anything like your aush since I left.” Ali could
picture Nafisa making the noodles and stirring the sour cream and vegetables to make
the delicious soup.

“How did you get here? Reza told us about flying the plane out and how you had to
sweep out the tracks. Did the Taliban come?”

“They did come, but not before I got all the tracks swept out. They came in two pickups,
I think, though I didn't actually see them. I could only hear them. I was over the
side of the cliff where they couldn't see me.” Ali told them about the rest of the
night, and the next days. He told them about his sister and about the journey in
the truck to Muhshed. He didn't tell them about the continuing threat of the Taliban.

Hassan and Shireen wanted to have a story about Mullah Nasrudeen, the one about how
Mullah Nasrudeen was the best chicken. Ali agreed but said they first had to tell
him about their classes and what they were playing after school. They took turns
sitting on his lap and telling him all about everything. It was great to be home.

***

About two months later, a stranger came into Sayeed's shop. He said he was from Bamiyan,
and he was looking for someone from Sharidure named Ali. At first, Sayeed was suspicious
of this stranger, but after further questioning,
he decided that what he was saying
was true, so he went to get Ali, who came to meet him. The man said that he was from
Bamiyan, but that he had a sister living in Sharidure. He had come through there
on his way to Muhshed to get cooking oil and kerosene. He had his own truck and made
the trip every other month. His sister told him that she was a friend of Shireen
and that Shireen was under suspicion of the Taliban. They thought she was teaching
girls and were making life very difficult for her, threatening her, restricting where
she went, watching her closely. She was afraid they might harm her more. The man
said his sister thought Shireen had a brother in Iran, probably in Muhshed. He said
he was a nephew of Akbar, Ali's father's friend, so he went there first to ask if
there was someone from Sharidure who might be Shireen's brother. That's how he found
Sayeed's shop. He knew the situation was very difficult for the people of Sharidure
and wondered if he could bring something back to Shireen to help her survive.

Ali thanked him profusely, asked where he was staying in case he wanted to contact
him, and went straight to his house to talk about what to do with Nafisa. “Ali, we
have to
help her. We are her only family. She must be so afraid. Do you think she
could come here?”

“I don't think so. Women who aren't accompanied by a man from their household aren't
allowed to go anywhere. Maybe we could send her some money. I trust this man from
Bamiyan. He is a nephew of Akbar.”

“Ali, what if you went to get her. Then she would be allowed to travel.”

“Let's think about it tonight and decide in the morning. The man from Bamiyan isn't
going back for several days because he has to get his truck loaded.”

***

The morning was Friday, “Jumah,” the holy day. There was no school, and the carpentry
shop was closed. After morning prayers and the sermon by the mullah at the mosque,
Ali and Nafisa sat back on the cushions in their home to decide what to do. They
both wanted to do the best thing for their family but were worried about what might
happen to Shireen, Ali's sister, if she stayed in Sharidure. They finally decided
that Ali had to go back to convince her to come to Iran. When they talked it over
with Nafisa's family, they agreed they couldn't
just leave Ali's sister alone, so
it was decided.

If the Taliban were suspicious of why Ali was there, he was going to say he was a
teacher and wanted to start a school for boys. Shireen helped him gather several
levels of teacher books. He also started letting his beard grow to help him be accepted
by the Taliban. His own children thought it strange to see him with a beard. They
had never seen him with one.

The truck was to leave on Monday for Bamiyan. The driver agreed to have Ali ride
along. He was glad to do his part to help. There were lots of hugs and tears, but
everyone was prepared for the separation. It would be a short one, probably not more
than a couple of weeks. The truck driver assured them he would continue making the
trip so Ali and Shireen were assured of a way back to Iran. It was a good plan. Even
Ali's beard was cooperating, coming in dark and thick.

Again the border crossing was uneventful. The evening of the second day saw the truck
rumbling into the outskirts of Sharidure. Ali invited the driver to stay for the
night. He was glad to accept, after turning down the initial offer. That was only
polite.

Shireen was totally surprised to see Ali when she greeted him at the door of their
home. After a warm meal, the driver took his things to the carpentry shop and parked
his truck in front.

Ali told Shireen of the plan. She liked the part about him being a teacher but insisted
she could not leave because the girls needed her as their teacher. She was having
small groups attending sewing lessons, and secretly teaching them to read, write,
and learn mathematics.

In the morning, a Taliban representative was at the door, asking who Ali was and
why he was here. Ali told him he was Shireen's brother, that he was here to be a
teacher for boys, and he just returned from Iran. The Taliban representative asked
for some proof, so Ali showed him the teacher books he had. That seemed to impress
him. He left making a comment about Ali's fledgling beard, but also saying it was
good that he was trying
to grow a beard in accordance with Taliban requirements.

Inside Boys' School • By Howard Faber

So it was, that Ali became the official teacher of the boys of Sharidure.

It worked out really well. It was completely out in the open. He had a reason to
be there. It was also a big relief for Shireen because she could now leave her home,
accompanied by her brother, an adult male, thus appropriate to the Taliban regulations.

However, it was a change in the plans for Ali. They would not be leaving as soon
as he expected. He would have to let his family in Muhshed know.

***

“Shireen, I overheard two of the Taliban talking today. They were saying they have
heard rumors of a secret school for girls. They said they are going to search all
of the houses until they find it. You have to stop.” This was one of Shireen's friends.
She had come to Shireen and Ali's house this morning to warn them. Shireen immediately
went to tell Ali what her friend said. Maybe one of the children had somehow been
overheard or one of the families. That night, Shireen only
had sewing classes, no
school. When the girls asked why, she told them she was waiting for new books, so
they would have to wait to have more classes until the books came.

The next morning, Ali found one of the dreaded night letters on the outside of their
door. It said they were suspected of having classes for girls, and unless the lessons
stopped, their home would be burned, and they would be punished. He didn't tell Shireen
but he was very worried. They would have to leave.

Where could they go? Should he tell Shireen? He decided he would have to tell her,
and they would both have to go. He couldn't leave her by herself. He also knew they
would be closely watched.

“Shireen, the Taliban suspect us of holding classes for girls. They will now be watching
us carefully.” He didn't tell her about the night letter. “I think we should leave
secretly but not right away. We have to think up a way to make it seem not to be
suspicious when we leave.”

Shireen could tell that this was a serious matter. She was afraid. “Ali, maybe this
is the time for us to leave. Do you have any ideas about where to go?”

“No, I'm hesitant to try to stay with people we know. It would put them in danger.
We also have to make the Taliban think we aren't acting strange. We have to let them
see us do our normal things, like having school for the boys, getting water, going
shopping, all of the usual things.”

“I think that's right, but we should also plan our escape.”

They went ahead with classes for the boys that day. That afternoon Shireen went with
Ali to the homes of the girls that were attending sewing classes to tell the families
there would be no more lessons until further notice.

They also started the plan for their escape. They walked to the eastern end of town,
to the bridge over the irrigation canal, down the other side of the canal, to the
river in the valley. They collected some driftwood from the river and carried it
back to their home. They made sure anyone watching saw them do this. They repeated
this every day for a week, establishing a routine that became part of their normal
activities. Every evening, they carried with them picnic supplies, blankets to sit
on, and even a small grill for cooking.

***

When Naeem, the driver from Bamiyan, came through with his truck, heading west to
Iran, Ali invited him into the carpentry shop to see if he would help them. Ali asked
if he could take the other route to Jungal, following the river west. That way they
could bypass Pahnjwak and several other small towns on the road to Jungal. Ali explained
that he and his sister had to leave secretly. They would meet him at sunrise tomorrow
morning along the river on the way to Jungal. Without asking lots of questions, Naeem
agreed, but said he couldn't wait long for them, as he had to be halfway to Iran
the next night.

The time came for them to leave, and that evening they packed up their usual picnic
supplies and headed east of town to the riverbed to have their usual picnic. They
turned for a last look at their home. It would be the last time they saw it.

On the way to the bridge, they walked past several Taliban. They tried their best
to look like it was the same as every other time. No one stopped them as they went
down to the river. Today, unlike before, they walked further along the river, following
it back west, until they were out of sight of town. They worried that someone would
notice, but no
one did.

It was a long night, cold after the sun went down. They wrapped up in the blankets,
waiting by the river on the way toward Jungal. They talked for a while, about their
parents, about Ali's new family, about growing up. They didn't talk about what might
happen if they were discovered.

Just after sunrise, they heard the sound of a truck approaching. At first, they hid,
unsure of whether it was the truck from Bamiyan. When they could see that it was,
they stood up and waved for the driver to stop. He climbed down quickly from the
cab, looking back toward town to be sure he had not been followed. He apologized,
but asked them to sit in the back of the truck, inside a box he made and hid under
his cargo. Inside were two quilts to soften the ride. It was not the most comfortable
of places, but they both realized that he was trying to help them and hide them from
anyone asking questions. The truck rumbled away, following the river west. That afternoon
when they pulled into Jungal, the precautions proved very wise. Several Taliban were
stopping each vehicle entering the town. Ali and Shireen could hear the Pushtu speakers
asking Naeem if he had seen a man
and woman on the road into town. He could truthfully
say he hadn't. They asked if he had seen anyone like that in Pahnjwak. Again, he
could truthfully say he hadn't. Ali and Shireen then heard someone climbing up on
the back of the truck to look at what was on board. Their hearts beat faster. Surely,
they would be discovered.