Pied Piper of Kabul

I 'stretched' some rules today. While taking a break from putting together my bedroom 'suite,' I stepped outside and heard some of the neighbodhood kids playing. It was a sunny afternoon and kids were doing what kids do best. Their laughter made me think of Annie and how much I missed her. I knew that at times the kids will come to the gates of the compound to wave and ask for chocolate and dollars. I grabbed a box of granola bars (I know; I'm sure they would have enjoyed something else more than old granola bars.) and a box of Pop-Tarts (now you're talking!) and slipped out of the compound through a side gate. I asked one of our Ghurka guards to call out to the children (the Ghurkas speak Urdu, among other languages, which is close enough to Dari for them to communicate). Within moments, I met ALL of the neighborhood kids. It was mostly girls that were out playing today and they all had a 'brother' at home and asked for more. I would guess that their ages ranged from five to eight. They were really very sweet and their new 'uncle' was only too glad to spoil them a bit. When the Ghurka saw that I was running out of treats, he told me to get back inside before the entire neighborhood mobbed me. I walked back inside and told my story to the fellas. They laughed and decided before I did this again I had better get a bigger (and better?!) bag of treats. It really made my day to see the joy in the eyes of the kids.