A Thousand Splendid Suns

Posted by: andrew william, 30-Apr-2010

I just started reading a book called “ A thousand Splendid Suns” by Khaled Hosseini. The book unravels with the life of a young girl born out of wedlock in the middle East. The book also unveils the story of another girl in the war torn country that eventually saw the fall of the Soviet ruling in Afghanistan.

Ever since I picked up this book, I have found it hard to put it down. I haven’t finished reading it yet. It is one of the most amazing books written on true account of everyday lives portraying injustice and human tragedies. This girl was not only rejected by her community, but her own father who eventually got her married to a man three times her age while she was 15 and sent to a place far away. She endured such hardship under an abusive husband. Although she faced such hardship she always found things in her life that would cheer her up, for an example such as the taste of an ice-cream for the first time in her life, she was amazed what tricks such things could play on the palette.

Happiness is not measured by what you have, its what you make of what you already have

Sometimes we forget the grace that is given to us. We wake up everyday, to a peaceful country, opportunities everywhere, a job to go to, meals on the table, friends, education, entertainment, access to the internet and information etc. When you read real life stories of people living not very far from us on the other side of the world, is when we will realize its time to quit complaining and being thankful for what we already have.

One of the parts of the stories of the characters of the book that touched me was a little boy named “Tamrik”, who lost a leg when he was 5 years old to a mine bomb planted by the soviets to cripple children so that their parents will quit the resistance and stay home to care for them. Tamrik was a little kid who was full of life; his handicap was not a hindrance to his amazing zest for life. He even won the heart of his childhood friend who was the prettiest girl in the village who eventually fell in love with him

Life is hard, in this world we will have trouble. Take heart, its not as bad as the others who have to endure more hardship daily than we would even experience in a lifetime.