An English exam interrupted by a deadly explosion. A chess game that triggers painful, long-buried memories. A marriage arranged between a ten-year-old boy and his one-month-old cousin. A poet who notes in frustration: “In our country, the sun is sentenced for its light.” And, as Afghanistan celebrates the holy day of Eid, one writer explores its true meaning, while another offers the recipe for a favorite holiday dish. These are among the pieces we highlight from an eventful November at the Afghan Women’s Writing Project (AWWP).
The month was also notable because our newly opened Women’s Writing Hut in Kabul held its first reading salon. AWWP writers gathered to share their poems and essays aloud and receive feedback and support from their colleagues. These are crucial early days in solidifying a community of Afghan women writers as well as developing the prototype for a larger women-only Internet cafe. Thanks to our dedicated and tireless Kabul Team for their work.
Thanks, also, to you. Launching the Women’s Writing Hut was a leap of faith made possibly by your donations, which also allowed AWWP in November to begin providing ongoing Internet service for our writers most in need, including one residing in a Taliban-held province and another living in virtual hiding.
To keep these programs going, we are planning Valentine’s Week Living Room Fundraisers in February. We already have commitments from one coast to the other, as well as overseas. Our goal is to have 25 living rooms in action, so please consider joining our grassroots community by hosting a gathering to help protect the voices of Afghan women. We will be offering Afghan recipes, idea kits, and Skype conversations with Team members. Please email Events Coordinator, Leanne Moore, at lkmoore212@gmail.com with questions or interest. And keep an eye on our site, where we will soon begin listing the Living Room Organizers and their hometowns.
Sharni Montgomery. What can we say about this vibrant woman from Down Under, except that she is a force of nature? A former advertising account manager and freelance journalist for the Sydney Morning Herald, Sharni fell in love with a cowboy and moved to what she calls her “One Horse Town” in Australia. From there, she is fending off heat, flies and exhaustion to run five kilometers in an effort to raise money for AWWP. Please consider pledging to her run, and following her online videos, which invariably make us smile.
Finally, Sally Goodrich, a devoted supporter and quiet adviser for AWWP since its founding in May 2009. Sally and her husband, Don, lost their oldest son Peter on 9/11 when he was in the second plane that struck the World Trade Center. She found her way out of what she called “the wilderness” of depression through a remarkable path, reaching out to, and falling in love with, the very country that had harbored her son’s killers. She and Don built a school in Afghanistan and, on an even more personal level, she became a surrogate mother to several young Afghan men and women who came to the States to study. She visited Afghanistan many times, and her contagious smile and accented greetings became well-known to her circle of friends there, as did her effusive exclamations of “I love you” to the Afghan men-be they armed fighters or government officials-who facilitated her work. AWWP is grateful for her clear vision, wise influence and sense of humor. Sally is facing her final battle against a cancer she has lived with for years. Please join us in sending this remarkable woman our thoughts and prayers.
My mother put cacao chocolates in front of my uncle’s wife, I’ve been told. Then all the guests in the room clapped. Dad kissed my face. “Congratulations,” he said. I was one month old. I didn’t know anything from this world. But from that day, I was promised to my 10-year-old cousin. Though I was a baby, my father engaged me and dug a grave for my dreams.
The food I most like to prepare on Eid is biryani, a special rice dish made with mutton, peppers, and spices. I learned how to prepare this food when I was in Pakistan. Biryani has a special smell and taste. Family members like to crowd into the kitchen while it’s being prepared just to keep asking when it will be ready to eat.
Suddenly my friend looked at me and said, “Are you crying?” “No,” I lied. “I know that you are crying!” she told me. She wiped away my tears with her hand, kissed me, and said with a warm smile, “Don’t worry, Rahela, we will make our country a better place, inshallah. The new generation should not cry; they should be strong.
As a resident of Afghanistan, I want to deliver my message for the holy period: Eid is a good opportunity for us. Let us forget new, expensive clothes; let us wear ordinary clothes but see a child in warm clothes.
I flashed back to distant memory of another chess game. I am a little girl, wearing black pants with a long colorful dress. The entrance to my house is half open and I am watching boys play chess with Farhad, our neighbor’s son, in front of their door. I am eager to see who wins. Suddenly we hear the sound of cars and one boy shouts, “Taliban is coming!” They all disappear like drops of water. I hear Mom calling me.
Want to take my picture? Pay me for it! Want to know me? My identity is burned on the street!
My rising hand begs so my family can survive
I want to feed them; I want to give them the good life.
Violence is getting worse
Injustice is spreading faster
I want to shout
out to human beings, STOP!
Among living creatures you are supposed to be the top.
I noticed there were no other females around; there were boys playing football, men drinking tea, children with kites. There were sheep and a cow-I think even they were male, too! It felt strange to be the only woman there. Although I looked totally Afghan, the men stared, perhaps because I had a camera in my hands.
Allyn Ilan, mother of three, is a journalist who has been covering Middle East conflicts, particularly the Israeli-Palestinian issue, for 30 years. She has written for several international news organizations, among them ThomsonReuters, for about the past decade.“In this era where it often seems there’s a lot of verbiage flowing out there on the Web, the AWWP stands out for its unique and brave writers, all of them women, sharing with all of us a true, unmediated sense of what their reality is like, and leaving a most indelible impression in the process.
“I have nothing but gratitude to express to these wonderful authors for giving me the privilege of sharing in their endeavor, and wish everyone of you a happy and fruitful future, most importantly, the freedom to pursue your dreams whatever they may be.”
Donations
Many of our students and women writers, especially outside of Kabul, cannot get to an Internet cafe due to security considerations. A laptop at home and a jump drive would allow them to write their pieces, and then they can ask a male relative to send the work at an Internet cafe.
A $20 donation will buy a flash drive and $500 in donations will buy a laptop for our women writers. No contribution is too small. Thank you, and please contact us with any questions.
The Afghan Women’s Writing Project has filed for non-profit with 501 (c) 3 status. Your donation is tax deductible.
The Afghan Women’s Writing Project was begun as a way to allow the voices of Afghan women – too often silenced – to enter the world directly, without any mediation. This project is possible only because of the outstanding American women authors and teachers who generously donate their time and energy as mentors.
Additionally, the tireless contributions of these volunteers:
Rachel de Baere,Director Neha Bawa, Creative Outreach Coordinator
Stefan Cooke, Webmaster and Website Designer Darcy Courteau, Editor Elisabeth Lehr, Workshop Program Coordinator
Jeff Lyons, Creative Outreach Director Leanne K. Moore, Special Events Coordinator Tahmina Popal, Liaison in Afghanistan
Kathleen Rafiq and HeidiLevine, Photography
Jordan Schneider, Online Magazine Editing Coordinator Tina Singleton, Liaison in Afghanistan
Stephanie Tait, Assistant Creative Outreach Director
Valerie Wallace, Editor and Social Network Coordinator
To stay informed about the latest news, events, and other developments with the Afghan Women’s Writing Project, please CLICK below and join our mailing list. We appreciate your support.
November to begin providing ongoing Internet service for our writers most in need, including one residing in a Taliban-held province and another living in virtual hiding.
