(I don’t believe I have explained before, but I have been using initials rather than names for the relief team as a precaution. It probably would not be a problem to identify them, but in a place that has seen so much trouble, and is far from trouble-free today, I have decided to err on the side of caution.)
Team leader L’s two daughters filled me in today on what they think of Afghanistan and the other places they have seen. His older daughter, H, is six. She’s the landmine expert I told you about the other day. Her little sister C is four, so she doesn’t have quite as many opinions, although both of them are delightfully articulate. Blonde and quite fair, they stand out here both because of their looks but also because of their lack of hesitancy to share whatever is on their minds. They say things every day that surprise me.
Their father, L, is American, though he has lived much of his life overseas. Their mom is Australian. When I asked C what sort of passport she had she smiled and shrugged. When I asked H what nationality she considers herself she said she is a “Triple A.” Triple A? “Yes, I’m an Australian/American/Afghan.”
I asked her, "what's your favorite place?" She thought for a few moments before saying, "McDonalds."
They haven't been out of Herat for a long time so I wonder when she's ever had a chance to visit one of those and have a happy meal?
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- Brad Behan
- ...has spent much of his life on the radio. Lately he has been working from a studio in his home in Colorado. The downside is he doesn't pass any coffee shops on his commute to work so he has to make his own.
