After six months in Jasmine’s village, the group decided to move on to their next project. In an unusual step, Ashley and two other volunteers from the group decided to stay for a few more months that lasted about three years. During this time, Ashley saw Jasmine advancing in school. She read and wrote effortlessly in the local language. She also learned quite a bit of English. Ashley loved Jasmine as though she was one of her children. But unfortunately, at some point, she and the others had to re-join the rest of the group. The day Ashley told Jasmine she was going to leave, the poor girl didn’t stop crying. Ashley wasn’t just a teacher, she was also a mother figure for her. Ashley used to encourage her, comfort her, and showed her a lot of love, something her mother never did.
Ashley promised Jasmine she would come to visit her when she could. In addition, she went to see her family. Since Ashley could already speak the local language, this time she communicated directly with Jasmine’s father without a translator. She made him promise he would allow Jasmine to continue attending school. In return, Ashley assured him she would send the family some money every month, as long as he kept his word. Ashley was well regarded in the village, and the residents loved her because of her kindness.
She helped many people during her years in the village, therefore she gained their trust. Before she left she asked some of her local friends to keep an eye on her favorite girl. Ashley gave Jasmine her address and encouraged her to stay in touch. Jasmine used to write to Ashley at least twice a week. She updated her with the latest news from the village and what was going on in her life. The agreement between Jasmine’s father and Ashley lasted until Jasmine was 14 years old. Then her father decided to marry her off to a man who was double her age. When Jasmine was told her father found a husband for her, she felt like the sky fell on her. She begged him to cancel the agreement with the future husband, but he just dismissed her.
He claimed that if he waited any longer he wouldn’t find a good match for her. Jasmine knew very well he was lying as he didn’t care about any of his daughters. He just sold them to the highest bidder as though they were cattle. Over the years, she saw her sisters suffer from their abusive husbands while her father did nothing to help them. She also saw him humiliate and abuse her mother as well as other females in the family. Jasmine couldn’t even update Ashley with the news, because by the time she learned of her upcoming marriage, she was already married. Besides, her father warned her not to say anything about her marriage to Ashley since he was afraid of losing the monthly payments. But the news made it’s way to Ashley and she put a stop to them.
After her wedding, Jasmine had to leave her parents’ house and move to her husband Ali’s house in another village, which was a little bit far from the village she grew up in. She didn’t know anybody in that village. Her husband’s family was in much better financial condition than her family, but it didn’t make her life any easier to live there. They were engaged in the carpet trade and sold souvenirs as well.
Jasmine’s husband had seven siblings, 4 brothers, and 3 sisters. The brothers never left their parent’s house. Any of them who got married brought his wife to live with the family. All the females in the family worked as carpet weavers. The males in the family sold carpets all over the country and abroad. Jasmine had four sisters-in-law. The oldest of them was barely 18 and the youngest was called Sarah, who was 11.
The sisters-in-law always looked miserable particularly Sarah who was in her latter stages of pregnancy. She was petite with a huge belly that made walking difficult for her. Her mother-in-law Amina called her a lazy cow and frequently punished her. She used to tease her daughters-in-law and said: “I had 8 children while I also took care of my husband’s family, without complaining.” She was a cruel woman and when Jasmine compared her to her father, he looked like an angel. One of her mother-in-law’s favorite punishments was to withhold food from the girls. It gave her pleasure seeing them suffer……..
With Experience Comes Wisdom 
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