My miracle leap year on February 29, 202029th of Feb is not just a leap year. It is the anniversary of the day my stoic son Shahbaz began his journey home. The arduous trek started at dawn on the 29th of Feb 2016. As Shahbaz was led towards the prison gates in Zabeel in Afghanistan, released from a private jail, manned and […]
The unbearable darkness of waiting on March 7, 2017Three missed calls. I wondered who was calling so persistently from a strange, unknown number. I finally answered the phone warily, ‘Kaun?’ (Who is it?). ‘Mama, I’ve escaped.’ Shock waves swept through my being. My knees almost gave way. My mind was churning. Could it really be Shahbaz? Four and a half years ago, on […]