Meg Laughlin: KABUL, Afghanistan
On a late afternoon in November, the young men lounging in the park under evergreen trees stare when a mother and her daughter stride past, swinging badminton rackets.
Women in the park? Playing sports in public? Unheard of — even nine years after the fall of the Taliban.
But Farida Momand and 14-year-old Miriam don’t care. They duck and swing. They jump and kick up dust, confident and carefree.
A few minutes into the game, Miriam’s father and brothers join in and the game becomes even more lively. With a mean backhand, Miriam slams the shuttlecock at her father, who slams it back. After the game, Labib Rayed tells his daughter that she’s “a fierce competitor.” “
"If we lived in America,” complains Miriam, “that would be a good thing.” “Let’s hope it will soon be a good thing here,” her father replies.
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