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Showing posts from June, 2012

Omar’s Friends

Omar has four friends: one boy and three girls. Boys, according to Omar, are too rowdy so he likes to play with girls. In the evening while Omar eyes my tea greedily, I ask him: “So how is Hassan, your only male friend?” “He is no longer my friend…you drink tea and coffee all the time, why can’t I have it?” “Tea is not good for kids. But what happened with Hassan.” “He doesn’t like me.” “Why?” While talking to Omar, I unheedingly poured more milk in my cup, and now it looks too milky for my taste. I pour some of it in another cup and add more tea to my gigantic mug. Omar who had been eyeing the whole thing now flounces off his chair to grab the cup. “This is for me.” He adds sugar to it. “So, why Hassan doesn’t like you?” I let him have those few sips of the milky tea. “Because I sit with Miraal Gul in my class.” Miraal Gul is Omar’s best friend and he says he likes her because…well! he likes her. Period. “Why don’t you sit with Hassan?”