My Story, My Dreams
When Kabul fell, I felt like I was drowning, unable to breathe or understand.
My name is Nagita. I am from Afghanistan.
2021 was one of the hardest, challenging, longest years of my life, not only for me but for all of Afghanistan. War never has a winner.
Before the Taliban came to Afghanistan, everything was good. We had security, education, and jobs for women. Everyone was very happy with their life. We couldn’t believe that the Taliban would take all of Afghanistan - every province. One night my family and I went with one neighbor to Aino Mena Park. After that night, people said that the Taliban were coming. We were all very scared and we didn’t know what would happen in the future. There was a war in every area in Kandahar. There was no war near our house, we could only hear the sounds of it. But it got closer to us everyday. People in war zones had to leave their houses. Oh my god, those were really hard days. My parents told my sister, Nabila, and I to leave for Kabul. When the Taliban got closer to Kabul, my family told us to leave the country altogether.
My journey to the U.S. started when I met my coworker. He was talking about his immigration case process to the U.S. He told me, “Nagita, you are an active young girl, you should apply for it”. I took his advice and he helped me with the application process. I feel so bad that he was unable to leave the country. I can only pray that he is safe.
I have a lot of memories of traveling. The most challenging trip was when I came to the U.S. from Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, my colleagues in the office prepared transportation services for us to give us a ride to Kabul airport. It was such a difficult time in the airport because almost the entire country was there! We were almost not even able to enter the airport. Finally, they let us in. No one was managing what was going on in the airport. It was chaos. We heard that they had arranged an Albanian Visa for me and my sister. But then somehow, we ended up in Qatar. When we asked our colleagues who had prepared our evacuation from Afghanistan, they said, Albania or Qatar, it doesn’t matter. Just leave the country! We had to follow what they said and finally left Afghanistan. We arrived in Qatar at 2 am. We were happy at first and thought everything would be easy from then on. But no! Everything was very slow, and we couldn’t sleep at all. It was such a hard time. After four days, we arrived in the U.S.
Everything was so different compared to Afghanistan. We started life from zero; zero English, zero friends or family. The first job I ever got in the U.S. was in the packaging sector of a make-up company. My dream a few years ago was to get my masters degree from India and to work for an Afghan businesswomen, and to make my own business and so on. I have lost that dream.
I also miss celebrating Eid with my family. Eid is centered around celebrating the end of a month of fasting and spending time with family, friends, and people within the community. It is common practice to buy new clothes and accessories for yourself and your family. Whenever I am visiting any clothing stores and I see a bunch of children wearing stuff, it reminds me of my little sister and brother. I miss them so badly, and I wish they were here with us, secure with a bright future.
When Kabul fell, I felt like I was drowning, unable to breathe or to understand. My soul is wounded, and it will never heal! I was exhausted physically and mentally, but at that time, there was no other option but to survive. In 2021, I saw the fall of humans, homes, and the future.
We failed to protect all those children who would become something if only they were allowed to. We failed to protect those women who grew and were shining stars of this dark sky in the last 21 years! Everyone’s future is in danger, not just my little sister’s and brother’s. We have become slaves again! 21 years have been wasted. What we worked so hard to build is now all ashes! Humanity has died, women’s rights are in danger and children won’t be able to dream again. Thousands of people want to leave Afghanistan, and there are many doors opening with people that are now trying to pull Afghans out of this misery. How many can you save? A million? Five million, 10, or 20? What about the rest?
But my story has not ended here. Now, I am working with Afghan refugees. I have a lot of hopes and dreams in my life here, and I am working on my dreams everyday.
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