Sylvia's Journal

Little Assefa with all of her 21 years is managing the massage place while Lisa is in her native Philippines. This includes confirming appointments with clients, getting the room ready, doing the massage, serving tea or coffee and writing receipts for services rendered. Here is one skill set that has been successfully transferred to an Afghan – she may not be quite at Lisa’s level but 15 years from now she surely will if things don’t fall apart here and the foreigners she practices on don’t leave.

Today it was clear that winter was over. Unlike in Massachusetts there is no regressing once this threshold has passed. Spring starts very near the 21st of March, give or take a week. From one day to the other bucharis can we turned off, gloves, hats and winter coats put away.

Fazel showed up with the sapphire earrings and rings that I commissioned last week. I am very happy with the result. Sita and Tessa will have to wait a few months before they get them. He also brought samples of the finest embroidery imaginable, made by his 45 year old mom. She must have very keen eyesight. Compared with that my cross stitching is of the crudest kind.

After lunch we went to Babur Gardens, partially to be outside in the balmy weather but also to see a photo exhibit from 6 accomplished photographers. Four of them Afghan, one contemporary foreigner, and one long since dead, John Burke, an Irish photographer who was the first to capture Kabul on his cumbersome glass plates.
In the evening we joined a mostly World Wildlife crew for an early St. Pats party.

Before we knew it the men were standing outside around a fire pit while the women sat inside – we have taken on the habits of our host country. Axel was happy for once to be with guys who are not doctors and who are not working on USAID projects. He was surrounded by rugged outdoorsy types who, evidently, like fires and strong adult beverages, large slabs of meat and who come from commonwealth countries. They got so carried away that they started to burn the garden furniture. That’s just about when we left.

Back home we watched in disbelief the images of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami and then more Libya scenes to which we are becoming inured.