Being a Muslim meant honor, keeping up appearances. Never mind that she was just a child and was the victim in both situations. Combine that with being sexually violated by a family member and it became apparent that she had brought dishonor on her family. She distinctly remembered from that moment on her family treated her differently. After losing large amounts of blood and after many hospital visits, it was confirmed: Rifqa would be blind in one eye. She said her early life seemed happy, joyful until one awful day when her brother threw a toy and damaged her eye. I was captivated by this young woman’s journey-a journey taken as a frightened adolescent, abused by her strict Muslim family. I happened to see a snippet of Rifqa’s story via a Youtube link a friend sent me. That is, until I picked up a copy of Hiding in the Light by Rafqa Bary. Being a writer, I’ve read many books, most of them consisting of entertaining stories and sweet lessons learned. For me, these books consist of The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom, Embracing Obscurity along with a small, elite group of others I’ll not mention here. In the course of a person’s life, there are a handful of books that leave an indelible impression on their heart, forever stamping them as changed.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |