If the story had been about anyone else, it would been dismissed as laaf, that Afghan tendency to exaggerate ---sadly, almost a national affliction; if someone bragged that his son was a doctor, chances were the kid had once passed a biology test in high school.

All good things in life are fragile and easily lost

It's often a matter of sitting in front of the computer and worrying. It's what writing comes down to--worrying that things aren't going to work out.

I have very fond memories of my childhood in Afghanistan, largely because my memories, unlike those of the current generation of Afghans, are untainted by the spectre of war, landmines, and famine.

I read actual physical books and have thus far avoided the electronic lure.

Afghan women, as a group, I think their suffering has been equaled by very few other groups in recent world history.

You've always been a tourist here. You just didn't know it.