“Is our life a historical fluke or destiny?”
17 years ago, in a small village in Iran, a 15 year young woman gave birth to a girl. The girl’s father was 17 years old. The couple was not married. According to the local Islamic tradition, the little girl, her mom, and her father, had to be killed by stoning. The fact that he wanted to marry the young woman did not matter. The family shame was that they had a sexual relationship before marriage.
But then destiny had something else for the little girl.
What saved all of them was that the young woman’s father did not know about his daughter’s pregnancy and she was sent away to relatives, where she gave birth. One of the relatives had a brother in California. Since he was gay, he could not live in Iran either. He and his partner were considering to adopt a child, but how would they get the little girl out of Iran?
The events that followed sound like a detective story. The doctor gave a woman in her 50’s the certificate that the newborn was her daughter. She took her to an Asian country, where it was easier to travel from Iran. There, the girl was joined by her future grandmother and after 7 months of waiting, which cost the family a small fortune, they were able to bring the child into the United States. This is when we met her for the first time.
The couple who adopted this lucky girl are good friends of ours. Through the years, we witnessed her grow and her two dads’ (whom she calls ‘Daddy’ and ‘Baba’) hair become grayer. The family, which also included the grandmother, lived through many ups and downs. The little girl became a young woman and an accomplished person. I did not see her for a number of years and when I recently saw her pictures, I was stunned by her beauty. Is it possible that her life turned out differently?
We live in a country where it is easy to take our opportunities and choices for granted, but life is different in many parts of the world. Religious repressions, antiquated traditions, tyrannical leaders, superstitions, tribal ways of life, and many other reasons can create a completely different reality.
Let’s not forget that—and every day, let’s be grateful for the blessings that are bestowed upon us.
P.S.
To support my story, I decided to include images of girls whom I photographed many years ago in different parts of the world (I am sure look differently today). When I photograph, some parents are concerned that photos of their children can be used by some unscrupulous individuals. I understand and support their concern. We do live in a “crazy world”. Let’s make it a safer place.
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