Again after a long break from Afghanistan, I'm back in the life of little electricity and a lot of dust. I spent the first hour trying to brush dirt off my clothes and then remembered, ah, yes, after a few weeks, my clothes will all be tinted a dusty light brown from the dust in the air, and my hair will be more than a little grimy.So it's back to evenings with generator electricity, and breakfasts in one of many beautifully-manicured Afghan rose and sunflower gardens. Summer is quickly winding down, and the autumn chill descends in the evenings.
This is Basmina in a picture that I took in May, just after writing about her in a post entitled "The Sweet Here and Now." I don't know where she is, though I'll do a little searching and let you know. Here she is in a Kabul hospital, about a week after being hit by a car, with her broken femur being "treated" by putting her leg on a traction. Some expat doctors who work at this hospital told me that those who have money get their broken bones treated immediately, but those without the funds are put on a traction and fixed later -- like my little street urchin Basmina.