A Foreigner In His Native Land

      In 1979 24th December a war broke out between Afghans and the Soviet Union, modern day Russia. In 1980 16th January Omar’s family migrated from Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to The United States of America. As the war got bloody and messed up his paternal grandparents had to leave in the middle of the night.They were one of the early immigrants  His grandmother was expecting his father at the time of migrating.

              Omar was looking in his dusty house attic and found a few dusty odd things there. There was an odd looking guitar which was kind of broken and was also very very dusty, an old recipe book in which Omar couldn't understand most of the ingredients in the cook book, he also found an old parchment with ancient writing in a language he didn’t understand ,and weird looking clothes.

        When he asked his parents about the weird things he had seen in the attic and they answered saying the old broken guitar was his great-grandfather's favorite and special special instrument which he gave to Omar’s father it was also the national instrument of their native land The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ,the old recipe book was his great-grandmother’s secret special recipe book which nobody could make like her quoted his father he also said she was the best cook in the world, the old parchment was old poetry written by their national poet Khushal Khan Khattak in Afghanistan’s local language Persian, and the clothes were their national dress which his father would wear when he was a little child like Omar.

         He asked his parents why they were and not in their native land and here in The United States . His parents told him about the Afghanistan and Soviet Union war and how his grandparents had to migrate from Afghanistan to America. The next question that came to his mind was that why they hadn't gone back when the war was over, his parents explained him that they had settled here for a long time and it would not be only hard for them to settle there  but also Omar because his education would be affected as the education in Afghanistan wasn’t as good as it was here in America .Omer then asked if he could go and visit ,explore his motherland.

          After months of requesting his parents, his father got them all tickets  to Afghanistan with his parents and grandparents. They were going for about a month.It was a very long flight but Omar was excited to step foot in his native soil.

              He was shocked as he step foot in the lands of Kabul  to see such a change from their old environment,but he was having a glorious and spectacular time.His parents and his grandparents were also very shocked as well as the last time they visited was ages ago and it had developed a lot since their last visit,but they were having a time of their lives.When they reached Omar met relatives he didn’t even know they were related to each other.They were all very kind to him to adjust into the environment. Everything was very new to Omar but he was enjoying himself with his parents ,Grandparents and relatives he had just met. Everyone was telling Omar old stories and he was enjoying them and having fun listening to them .They had a wonderful time sharing stories with each other Omar was surprised to hear what an eventful life his family has spent.Even Omar was telling them all stories about his life in America and the school he went to,they were all proud of his all his academic achievements.    

             As Omar didn’t know his native language Persian, communication with the local Afghans was  difficult for him,but that didn’t stop him from trying his best, luckily all the grown ups knew their mother tongue and helped him out. He made his grandparents promise to teach him the language when they get back.              

        They were all enjoying themselves and having a very incredible time.He also tried to learn how to use Rubab from his Grandfather. He was a quick learner ,and also bought a new Rubab as his great-grandfather’s one was broken.

               He tried a few recipes from his great-grandmother’s cookbook cooked by his grandmother. There was one dish he really liked that was one of their national dishes. It was some sort of rice.He also looked quite adorable in their national outfit.   

     His grandparents showed him around and made him try their traditional foods which Omar enjoyed very much.Omar was quite surprised as he didn't think that there would be a lot of change in this new community.

         Omar learned their Islamic traditions very easily. Omar wanted to see everything but that was quite impossible as the time came closer to leaving his native home and his relatives he had just met . Omar was upset to leave so soon and he wanted to spend more time with his family he just met, but he had learnt a lot in these few weeks.

      When Omar reached his present homeland, The United States Of America, he was elated and wanted to tell all his friends about his fascinating and wonderful time he had and he thanked his parents for listening to his wish and taking him to his beautiful native land. He claimed it was the greatest trip ever. 

              He learned how much family mattered from this trip and learned how much on life he had missed out.He soon also learned their national language and in his next visit he could speak it fluently and he also learned how to cook some of the recipes from his great grandmother's recipe book and this time his father said he had made it exactly the way great grandma would make it, and grandpa said great grandma and great grandfather would be very proud of him to bring back the traditions of the family after a very very long time and it made them realize what they were missing on.