In the small apartment in Las Vegas, Nevada that she watched over and protected her baby sister, Parand Ara sat on a chair with her eyes glued to the television screen across the room. She cared little for luxuries, and the furnishings of her home were few but enough to live by and to raise her sister both safely and comfortably. In her own mind, if you had no real need for something, then why have it? Just for the sake own saying that you own it? In her opinion, that was a wasteful way of thinking; an indulgence for something not needed and unnecessary.
But if you were to walk into the single bedroom she shared with her ten year old sister Larissa, you would see a few exceptions to the rule. All in the name of the child whom she had went to great lengths to rescue from the harsh life all women live under in Syria. There were a few toys, dolls and a teddy bear, colorful books with fanciful stories, and coloring books and crayons. Granted, this made Larissa's side of things practically take the bedroom over, but it was a small sacrifice that Parand Ara was willing to "suffer" to see Larissa's face light up with a smile.
She allowed Larissa to watch cartoons, but for now the little girl was in their bedroom, focusing on her school work that she had been sent home with. For the longest of times, Parand had planned to have Larissa home schooled, but her work schedule would not permit that and she knew deep down that it would be beneficial for her to be around children her own age, of different nationalities so she could grow in both body and spirit. Adults would usually be scathing with foreigners, especially women of Parand and Larissa's nationality and faith, but children?
Children were shockingly more open minded and accepting of those different from them. They might behave with an unbridled curiosity, but once that had passed, they welcomed you with a smile and open arms. Already Larissa had regaled her with little stories from the public school she had been enrolled in, about how other children had asked her to play at recess and asked her questions about her home country. Larissa had even been invited to a sleep over birthday party and although Parand was hesitant, Larissa's constant cries of wanting to go was slowly whittling away at her resolve.
But as Larissa worked on her math and history homework, Parand's eyes were on the screen and the recent Kavanaugh hearings. It astounded her that here, a man with multiple rape and assault accusations against him, still had so much support by the people and his political peers, that it was likely he would indeed soon be seated on the United States Supreme Court. Sadly, after living in the country for so long, there was little that surprised Parand any longer. These days, it was just ....
Sad.
In small ways, it seemed that little by little, the United States was beginning to resemble Syria in regards to how men viewed women as meaningless things. And upon watching another outburst by the accused, Parand silently clicked the remote to turn the screen dark and she brooded. Had she made an error in bringing Larissa to this country where men like Kavanaugh would reign without fear in their misdeeds? Could they have gone somewhere else where the men and women who acted more like tyrants than the representatives of the people were in charge?
That was a thought for another day, as she stood up and moved toward the kitchen to prepare the evening meal for her family. She had other things on her mind now, and this weekend she would check one off the list...
"So I see that Trinity Jones has returned to SCW. I have to ask the question though -- why? Her first run was less than impressive, if we are to be honest, and did she have more success in her first match back? She did not. She fell to a woman we all knew little about other than she enjoyed running her mouth from the relative safety of social media, a troll, if you will. An anonymous bully. But now trinity thinks to use me as a means of deflecting that lack of success so she can again hold her head up high with an air of righteousness."
"Wait, did I say she could again hold her head up high? Pardon me, that was alack of thought on my part, as she has ever had little reason to hold her head up with any form of dignity. She's done nothing of note to earn it, and this coming weekend I will explain to her with not words, but actions, as to why she should have stayed the course and remained obsolete in the grand scheme of things."
