"Hassan's loyalty was a mirror of my own weakness"
Truth
"I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frozen winter's day in 1975."
Life
"Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba's love."
Family
"And that, I believe, is the true picture of redemption."
Hope
"I thought of Baba, of Ali, of Hassan. Mostly of Hassan."
"I ran because I was a coward."
Fear
"I wondered if that made me a monster"
"Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay"
Justice
"I ran. I ran because of the look on Baba's face"
Fear
"I became what I am today at the age of twelve"
Change
"I could wade into this river, stand in the middle, and not feel a thing"
"It all comes back to the kite"
Life
"I was a coward"
"I had one friend. One"
Friendship
"I'm not your Baba, am I"
Truth
"Soraya was a paradox"
Love
"America was a place to bury my sins"
Hope
"I could escape into the streets, into the bazaar"
Imagination
"I wanted to call him back and tell him that I was sorry"
"I am Sunni. Hassan is Shia"
"I loved Baba. But I feared him too"
Relationships
"Words like 'imbecile' and 'idiot' and 'moron' made me wince"
Kindness
"I was going to be a doctor. That was Baba's plan"
"She was like a stone in the middle of a river"
Strength
"I could tell by the way he looked at me that he knew"
"Ghosts. I had become a ghost"
"The Taliban was worse than I imagined"
"I was looking for a way to be good again"
"I had betrayed the person closest to me"
"Baba and I lived in silence"