I returned to Kabul after a 27-year absence. I came away with some optimism but not as much as I had hoped for. The two major issues in Afghanistan are a lack of security outside Kabul (particularly in the south and east) and the powerful warlords ruling over the provinces with little or no allegiance to the central government. The other rapidly rising concern is the narcotic trade which, if not dealt with, may turn Afghanistan into another Bolivia or Colombia.

It is now your duty to hone that talent, because a person who wastes his God-given talents is a donkey.

He is annoyed with their lack of interest, their blithe ignorance of the arbitrary genetic lottery that has granted them their privileged lives.

There will be no floating waway. There will be no other reality tonight.

The rope that pulls you from the flood can become a noose around your neck.

A boy who won't stand up for himself becomes a man who can't stand up to anything.

And that's the thing about people who mean everything they say. They think everyone else does too.