Ramblings from a painter |
As I'm wrapping up my time here in Maiwand, I've been putting together what is essentially a pass-down book. It contains a lot of stuff that people who work in the district, or whose work affects the district, need to know. Things like a list of all the public schools, information on who's in the shuras, writeups on the key power players, data on community councils, project reports, all kinds of things. Some of it's narrative, some tables, some lists, and a few pictures. Not exactly the Great American Novel, but if you're interested in Maiwand, it's a good thing to have around for reference.
One of the areas that I've really learned a lot about while doing this project is the recent history of the district. By "recent", I mean since the establishment of the communist regime back in the 1970's, through the Soviet invasion, to the civil war years, then the Taliban rule, and finally the "modern" period since 2001. The elders of this district have lived through all of this. Some of them were on opposite sides at various times. Some of them were literally shooting at each other on occasion and will joke about it now. "That was you in that field? I was in the back of the pickup shooting at you!" "Really? Well, you still can't aim your AK worth a hoot!"
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As I'm wrapping up my time here in Maiwand, I've been putting together what is essentially a pass-down book. It contains a lot of stuff that people who work in the district, or whose work affects the district, need to know. Things like a list of all the public schools, information on who's in the shuras, writeups on the key power players, data on community councils, project reports, all kinds of things. Some of it's narrative, some tables, some lists, and a few pictures. Not exactly the Great American Novel, but if you're interested in Maiwand, it's a good thing to have around for reference.
One of the areas that I've really learned a lot about while doing this project is the recent history of the district. By "recent", I mean since the establishment of the communist regime back in the 1970's, through the Soviet invasion, to the civil war years, then the Taliban rule, and finally the "modern" period since 2001. The elders of this district have lived through all of this. Some of them were on opposite sides at various times. Some of them were literally shooting at each other on occasion and will joke about it now. "That was you in that field? I was in the back of the pickup shooting at you!" "Really? Well, you still can't aim your AK worth a hoot!"
(READ MORE)
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