Telling Our Stories

We have some neighbors of ours (that we are about to leave in our move to Texas) that literally represent three distinct cultural backgrounds and experiences – Afghani (Abdul), Venezuelan (Yavette), and American (Jessica and Homer). They wanted to treat us to lunch yesterday and so prepared an enormous feast that was far more than we could ever eat. Though they speak English fairly well, there is still the presence of a slight language barrier. So conversation with them is sometimes a challenge. But I was determined to hear, out of simple curiosity, some of their stories about where they grew up, how they met, etc.

As they each told a little about their lives and history, I was utterly amazed. Abdul, for example, lived in Afghanistan during the invasion and occupation of Russia. I remember the struggle vaguely from my limited exposure to world history. He told us about how he and many of his family were attempting to escape the country when Russian forces intercepted them. They were arrested and interrogated, and Abdul was actually imprisoned for nearly five months in the city of Kabul. He recalled sleeping eighteen prisoners in a cell that was no bigger than 10 feet by 10 feet. It was a teacher that actually came to his aid and assisted him in getting an education visa to the United States.

Yavette told us much about her family in Venezuela who are business owners and operators. They are strongly opposed to the current leader of the country (Chavez) who seeks to walk in the footsteps Fidel Castro in Cuba (Papa Fidel, as she said). Since the rise of Chavez to power, the economy of the country (and its liberties) has been significantly hampered and damaged. But everyone in Venezuela knows that taking a strong stance against Chavez only leads to difficulties, so they are officially neutral politically.

The dialogue was fascinating, and I learned a valuable lesson: everyone has a story to tell and eagerly desire to tell it. Here where two individual who have incredible stories to share, and what a way to learn about the world and modern history. Abdul and Yavette have such rich experiences that make them into the beautiful people that they are.