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December 16, 2016

Courage —

I walked into the building confidently and faced the other people at the mall. I was told not to leave my house after what the terrorist did in France. Everyone in my family told me not to go to the mall. In France, Muslims were being hurt and the girls’ hijabs were being ripped off. After World War 3, Muslims are at the brink of extinction. I was walking into a scarf shop to buy a new hijab when I was hit in the head harshly with a metal rod. Well that's what my mother said.
I awoke to find myself covered in bandages and looked into a mirror. I found myself with the word terrorist written across my forehead and one of my eyes was turning purple. My ears rang and my head throbbed. I looked at myself and wet my hand in the sink. I slowly pulled my hand up to my head, wiping off the word from my forehead. I returned to the bed and sat down. I kept sitting and thinking of what I did when the doctor came in. He hurriedly checked if I was ok. I asked him what was wrong. He said I was in a coma for 8 years. I looked at him in shock and told him to continue. The doctor said I changed the whole world from their thoughts of Muslims and we now have a new understanding of Muslim people. He called my mom and the rest of my family. We exchanged hugs and cried for a long time. My mother looked a lot older than before; she had wrinkles in new places around her face and bits of her white hair popping out of the hijab. I was happy that my courage brought peace to the world of Muslims.
— Ayah Mirza, 9th grade