The title of this blog entry is also the title of a book written by Khaled Hosseini in 2003, later made into a movie in 2007, and set in Afghanistan. I have yet to read or see either, but they're on my to do list while I'm deployed over the next year. The story details the sorted relationship between an affluent Afghan Pashtun boy and his father's Afghan Hazaran servant's son taking place from before the Soviet invasion and continuing through the rise of the Taliban's rule. In their youth, the two children's favorite activity was competitive kite flying.
Children in Afghanistan typically have few toys, and kites are easy and inexpensive to make. They're made of brightly colored tissue paper and wooden reeds with glue or tape to hold them together and tethered by a razor sharp twine. In Afghanistan, flying kites is a sport, but it's not done like any other kite flying that we're used to seeing in the Western world. It is actually kite fighting, known in Pashtun as "Gudiparan Bazi". Kite fighting is called so because children play a game attempting to fly their kites over the kites of other children and sever their strings setting their kites adrift. Often, the twine is covered in a sticky resin or glue and then rolled in tiny glass particles so that the string will cut the opponent's line easier. A kite runner is a child who retrieves the fallen kites. Kites that are cut free are called “azadi rawest”, or “free and legal” so that they may be claimed by another child for later use. Neighborhoods have competitions to name their “sharti”, or kite fighting champion. I don't have pictures of this phenomenon yet, but it's something I'm looking forward to seeing.
http://subvision.net/sky/planetkite/middle-east/afghanistan/
During the rule of the Taliban, kites were banned because they were deemed to be "un-Islamic". But then again, just about everything was un-Islamic according to these kooks. For example, they even banned the sale of cucumbers and tomatoes next to each other because male and female fruits were not allowed to be in proximity to each other. (Sounds to me like the real fruits were the ones illegitimately in power.) In the decade since the Taliban were removed from power, kite flying has reached new heights, so to speak. In fact it's more popular than ever now that the prohibition has been lifted.
I was having dinner outside last night, and I noticed a kite was floating down from the sky. There are couple other people in my office that have small kites stuck to the walls in front of their desks, and I decided this was my opportunity to get my piece of the sky. I jumped up and ran towards it like a little kid chasing it through our small compound. It landed on top of a tent, and I searched around for a stick large enough to reach it. Having retrieved it and cutting the attached twine, I took the fragile work of child's art back to my desk for my own personal trophy.
This country has seen some of the worst oppression at the hands of invaders over the last several thousand years and yet it still survives, and in some areas, blossoms in the imagination of children. I suppose this is where I could become corny and begin quoting Whitney Houston how the children are our future, but I think we all know where this is going. As long as hope springs eternal and there are children to chase kites, whether they be ten year old Afghans or adult U.S. Soldiers who still feel like kids, the world still has a chance. And that's all this place really needs in the end is a chance for kids to be kids and grow up with joy in their hearts instead of hate.
More to follow.
Children in Afghanistan typically have few toys, and kites are easy and inexpensive to make. They're made of brightly colored tissue paper and wooden reeds with glue or tape to hold them together and tethered by a razor sharp twine. In Afghanistan, flying kites is a sport, but it's not done like any other kite flying that we're used to seeing in the Western world. It is actually kite fighting, known in Pashtun as "Gudiparan Bazi". Kite fighting is called so because children play a game attempting to fly their kites over the kites of other children and sever their strings setting their kites adrift. Often, the twine is covered in a sticky resin or glue and then rolled in tiny glass particles so that the string will cut the opponent's line easier. A kite runner is a child who retrieves the fallen kites. Kites that are cut free are called “azadi rawest”, or “free and legal” so that they may be claimed by another child for later use. Neighborhoods have competitions to name their “sharti”, or kite fighting champion. I don't have pictures of this phenomenon yet, but it's something I'm looking forward to seeing.
http://subvision.net/sky/planetkite/middle-east/afghanistan/
During the rule of the Taliban, kites were banned because they were deemed to be "un-Islamic". But then again, just about everything was un-Islamic according to these kooks. For example, they even banned the sale of cucumbers and tomatoes next to each other because male and female fruits were not allowed to be in proximity to each other. (Sounds to me like the real fruits were the ones illegitimately in power.) In the decade since the Taliban were removed from power, kite flying has reached new heights, so to speak. In fact it's more popular than ever now that the prohibition has been lifted.
I was having dinner outside last night, and I noticed a kite was floating down from the sky. There are couple other people in my office that have small kites stuck to the walls in front of their desks, and I decided this was my opportunity to get my piece of the sky. I jumped up and ran towards it like a little kid chasing it through our small compound. It landed on top of a tent, and I searched around for a stick large enough to reach it. Having retrieved it and cutting the attached twine, I took the fragile work of child's art back to my desk for my own personal trophy.
This country has seen some of the worst oppression at the hands of invaders over the last several thousand years and yet it still survives, and in some areas, blossoms in the imagination of children. I suppose this is where I could become corny and begin quoting Whitney Houston how the children are our future, but I think we all know where this is going. As long as hope springs eternal and there are children to chase kites, whether they be ten year old Afghans or adult U.S. Soldiers who still feel like kids, the world still has a chance. And that's all this place really needs in the end is a chance for kids to be kids and grow up with joy in their hearts instead of hate.
More to follow.
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