A Thousand Splendid Suns - Journal #1

"The others understood too when Tariq straightened up, standing on one leg. When he began hopping toward Khadim, then charging him, his unstrapped leg raised high over his shoulder like a sword. The boys stepped aside in a hurry. They gave him a clear path to Khadim. Then it was all dust and fists and kicks and yelps. Khadim never bothered Laila again." (pg. 120)

To me, this passage represents strength and resilience. Tariq still takes it upon himself to defend Laila, regardless of the physical differences between him and Khadim. Tariq's automatic instinct of defence kicks in when he realizes that his friend, Laila, has been made fun of and attacked for her smart innocence. Once defence mode is activated, nothing else matters to Tariq, and he gives it all he's got to challenge Khadim. Tariq doesn't let his physical barriers get in his way, temporarily pushing them aside during the confrontation.

The fight, which was completely self-inflicted by Tariq, is prime evidence that just because a person is disabled, that doesn't mean that they're useless. In fact, they can sometimes use their situation to their advantage. When Tariq first hobbled across the street and toward Khadim and the other boys, it looked as if Tariq would get trampled by them if he attempted to fight. That is until he secretly powers up. He suddenly charges towards the boys, immediately intimidating them and forcing them to quickly step out of his way, as "his unstrapped leg [slowly] raised high over his shoulder like a sword". Sometimes disabled people don't necessarily look incredibly strong (mentally or physically), but if they're put into certain situations, they can emerge to be quite strong , maybe even stronger than "normal" people.

I've made a strong personal connection to this quote, particularly because, unknown to most of you, I have a disability myself. I have mild Cerebral Palsy. It's usually not evident within a person's first impression of me because I can walk, talk, and I'm very smart. The disability is still there though. I have seen how most people bypass and don't pay attention to the disabled population in our world, but I've seen it first hand with the special needs kids in our school. Most people do associate with them, but there is a number that don't. This could be because they're scared, they think the disabled are dumb, or they may have other prejudice reasons. By not associating with these kids, people don't realize how amazing they are and that they do have strengths. They are usually just looked upon for their flaws and weaknesses, whether they are mental or physical. That's hurtful to me, because I feel that everyone has something to offer this world, and everyone has good traits about them, even if they do look or act different. This all relates back to the quote because even though Tariq has a physical disability, he is still able to come out on top in the fight with the "normal" boy, Khadim.

On a final note, this quote makes me realize that every character in this book (or any other book) is different, and even if their physical or mental ability, race, or belief system is different from that of another character, they all have something to offer to the storyline, and each of them make their particular novel the best it can be.