with Asif, but mostly for having a dream in the first place. His leg would not grow back, there would never be enough food, and unboiled water would always make people sick.
She ripped the paper out of the notebook, balled it up and threw it into the field.
A breeze picked up the little ball of paper and sent it back to her. It landed just out of her reach.
She picked up a stone and threw it at the paper. She missed, then threw another stone angrily.
“Those are lousy throws,” Asif said.
“Oh, you think you could do better with those skinny arms of yours?”
“I could throw better than you if I had no arms!”
The challenge was on. Parvana helped Asif stand up, and she handed him some stones. He leaned on one crutch as he threw. His first throw went a lot farther than hers.
“I told you!”
“My first throws didn’t count,” Parvana insisted. “I wasn’t trying.” She threw another rock. This was much better.
They kept throwing. Sometimes Asif’s throw went farther, sometimes hers did. She kept handing Asif rocks, and he kept throwing them.
“Anyone can throw these small stones,” Asif said. “Get me some big rocks, and I’ll show you how to really throw.”
Parvana made a little pile of rocks big enough to need two hands to throw. She had to hold him up while he threw these, because he couldn’t throw and hold onto his crutches at the same time. The effort made him cough, but he kept trying.
Parvana picked up the largest rock in the pile. It was quite heavy. She put all her strength behind it and heaved it into the field.
The ground roared and rose up in front of them, as if a monster was punching its way through from below.
The children screamed. They screamed and screamed, and kept screaming as the dust settled.
Asif threw a stone at Parvana’s shoulder. “You led us into a mine field!” he hollered, his rage making his voice even louder than Hassan’s screams. “You are the stupidest girl. With all your writing and all your France, you don’t know what you’re doing! We will all be blown up! You are stupid, stupid, stupid!” As he yelled at her, his hand kept grabbing at the place where his leg used to be.
Something made Parvana put her arms around Asif’s frail body. They dropped to the ground, gathered up the stinking, weeping Hassan, clung to each other, and cried and cried.
TEN
Parvana didn’t know how long they sat like that. It seemed like hours and it seemed like minutes.
She shielded her eyes and looked out at the rocky, dusty field. She couldn’t tell by looking at it how deadly it was.
Sometimes land mines were spread on top of the ground, brightly painted to look like pretty things. People would try to pick them up and get their arms blown off. Most of the land mines were buried just a few inches under the ground. People didn’t know they were stepping on them until the bombs exploded.
Parvana didn’t know what to do now. If they were in a mine field, all they had to do was take one wrong step, and the earth would rise up beneath them.
Should they head out across the field and maybe get blown up? Should they stay where they were and wait to die from hunger and thirst? How could she know what was the right decision? She was too tired and sad to even guess. Either way, it looked as though they were all going to die. She would never meet up with Shauzia after all. She thought of her friend, sitting at the top of the Eiffel Tower, waiting and waiting and waiting.
Parvana rested her chin on Asif’s shoulder as their crying subsided into quiet sobbing. She looked out at the field. All she saw was rocks and dust and hills with more rocks and dust.
Something caught her eye. It was moving toward them. She blinked a few times to be sure she was seeing correctly, then sat up straight.
“Someone’s coming,” she said, “across the mine field.”
Asif turned and looked where she was pointing.
“I think it’s a girl,” he said.
“I think you’re right,”
She ripped the paper out of the notebook, balled it up and threw it into the field.
A breeze picked up the little ball of paper and sent it back to her. It landed just out of her reach.
She picked up a stone and threw it at the paper. She missed, then threw another stone angrily.
“Those are lousy throws,” Asif said.
“Oh, you think you could do better with those skinny arms of yours?”
“I could throw better than you if I had no arms!”
The challenge was on. Parvana helped Asif stand up, and she handed him some stones. He leaned on one crutch as he threw. His first throw went a lot farther than hers.
“I told you!”
“My first throws didn’t count,” Parvana insisted. “I wasn’t trying.” She threw another rock. This was much better.
They kept throwing. Sometimes Asif’s throw went farther, sometimes hers did. She kept handing Asif rocks, and he kept throwing them.
“Anyone can throw these small stones,” Asif said. “Get me some big rocks, and I’ll show you how to really throw.”
Parvana made a little pile of rocks big enough to need two hands to throw. She had to hold him up while he threw these, because he couldn’t throw and hold onto his crutches at the same time. The effort made him cough, but he kept trying.
Parvana picked up the largest rock in the pile. It was quite heavy. She put all her strength behind it and heaved it into the field.
The ground roared and rose up in front of them, as if a monster was punching its way through from below.
The children screamed. They screamed and screamed, and kept screaming as the dust settled.
Asif threw a stone at Parvana’s shoulder. “You led us into a mine field!” he hollered, his rage making his voice even louder than Hassan’s screams. “You are the stupidest girl. With all your writing and all your France, you don’t know what you’re doing! We will all be blown up! You are stupid, stupid, stupid!” As he yelled at her, his hand kept grabbing at the place where his leg used to be.
Something made Parvana put her arms around Asif’s frail body. They dropped to the ground, gathered up the stinking, weeping Hassan, clung to each other, and cried and cried.
TEN
Parvana didn’t know how long they sat like that. It seemed like hours and it seemed like minutes.
She shielded her eyes and looked out at the rocky, dusty field. She couldn’t tell by looking at it how deadly it was.
Sometimes land mines were spread on top of the ground, brightly painted to look like pretty things. People would try to pick them up and get their arms blown off. Most of the land mines were buried just a few inches under the ground. People didn’t know they were stepping on them until the bombs exploded.
Parvana didn’t know what to do now. If they were in a mine field, all they had to do was take one wrong step, and the earth would rise up beneath them.
Should they head out across the field and maybe get blown up? Should they stay where they were and wait to die from hunger and thirst? How could she know what was the right decision? She was too tired and sad to even guess. Either way, it looked as though they were all going to die. She would never meet up with Shauzia after all. She thought of her friend, sitting at the top of the Eiffel Tower, waiting and waiting and waiting.
Parvana rested her chin on Asif’s shoulder as their crying subsided into quiet sobbing. She looked out at the field. All she saw was rocks and dust and hills with more rocks and dust.
Something caught her eye. It was moving toward them. She blinked a few times to be sure she was seeing correctly, then sat up straight.
“Someone’s coming,” she said, “across the mine field.”
Asif turned and looked where she was pointing.
“I think it’s a girl,” he said.
“I think you’re right,”
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