My Hijab,Jake and I.

Chapter Two..Pain in the a??

Medina.

I finish combing my hair and make my way inside. I happen to glance up to the house next door,hoping I'll see Kelly looking out of her bedroom window but she's not there. She has been awol for quite a while now. I miss her morning chats from her window. She's such a cutie unlike her pain in my ass brother Jake. Sighing I look up once more and I see the curtains twitch, I wait but they stop and no one is there. Shrugging I make my way inside to get ready for school.

Mama has finished making breakfast and is waiting for us to sit down at the kitchen table to eat. Sarina my Thirteen year old sister is already seated stuffing her face. That girl just loves her food. I wonder how she will fare in ramadan. She is of the age to fast now and I worry for her.

I guess we will have to wait and see in sha Allah.

My Abu [father] walks in and hugs mama from behind. She swatted his arm to let go but he still held on. My Abu is like that. He is very openly affectionate with mama. It's not typical muslim behaviour some may think but even some of  us muslims are also soppy romantics to. My Abu is a gentleman and a romantic at heart. I wish one day we find someone like our Abu, who loves his wife unconditionally and supports her in everything she does.

We are a very proud and devout family. We come from pakistan originally and we are pashtun.

The pashtun are proud people in their own right. The history of the pashtuns make me exceptionally proud to be one. Our hometown is now  known as KPK . We live in peshawar. It's one of the beautifulest cities in the world. The rich culture,the history. However the only downfall of our home country is that it stills lives in the middle ages in certain areas. When we go back home I see woman wear the burka and I find it over the top, I guess being exposed to western life has me thinking that way. It's a requirement for most people… For us however as we live in the city we wear a long chadar[cotton long pashmina type scarf].  Abu is very open minded here but in pakistan when we go on our holidays he wants us to respect his family values there and we do. It's about keeping a balance he says. He doesn't want us taking liberties there. We know he does it for our benefit and only a fellow pashtun will understand this.

Abu finally lets go of our flustered mama. Yep. My Abu can still make Mama feel that way. You wouldn't think it that they had an arranged marriage. It wasn't love at first site on Abu’s part Mama says. She however fell for him the moment she laid eyes on him on their wedding night. They had to go through their fair of heartache and sorrow. They haven't told us the full story, we only hear of it when Mama gets angry sometimes and throws things verbally in Abu’s face. Abu just laughs it off and stays quiet until she has finished ranting. The next morning its all hugs and stolen kisses.

‘’Medina ! Can you stop daydreaming and finish of your breakfast please’’! I’m brought back  to the present with mama’s gentle chiding.

‘’Sorry Mama.’’ I replied, smiling at her whilst I finish my last piece of toast.

‘’Do you want me to drop you girls of at school’’? Abu asks us. He  dislikes us walking to school. He misses driving us to and fro. But we insisted that we would like to walk like the other kids.

‘’No Abu Jan’’. Me and Sarina say in unison.

‘’Ouch.’’ Abu puts his hand on his heart.’’You make an old man feel very unwanted’’. His joking as we can tell from the gleam in his beautiful hazel eyes. Those eyes that his children have inherited. Mama’s are a beautiful emerald green. Well can’t complain they both beautiful people. Pashtuns are known to be.

Rolling my eyes dramatically. I look at him and sigh jokingly.

‘’Abu. You know why we like to walk. Plus you have to go open the shop no?’’