In the Sea There are Crocodiles

1. A Mother's Sacrifice: A Journey Begins

My mother, for example, decided it was better to know I was in danger far from her, but on the way to a different future, than to know I was in danger near her, but stuck in the same old fear.

A desperate choice. Enaiatollah's journey began not by his own will, but by his mother's agonizing decision to save him from a life of slavery in Afghanistan. As a Hazara, his family was indebted to the Pashtun after his father's death, and with Enaiatollah growing too old to hide, his mother saw no other option but to send him away. This act of profound love, though it meant separation, was her ultimate hope for his survival and a future free from persecution.

Three vital lessons. Before their departure, Enaiatollah's mother imparted three crucial rules for life: never use drugs, never use weapons, and never cheat or steal. She also encouraged him to always hold a wish in his heart, like a carrot before a donkey, to find the strength to persevere. These teachings, delivered in a strange, low voice, were her final, warming embers of guidance before an unimaginable goodbye.

The Hazara plight. Their village, Nava, though beautiful, was a dangerous place for Hazaras, who faced constant threats from the Taliban and Pashtun. The brutal closure of Enaiatollah's school, culminating in the public execution of his kind teacher, underscored the systemic oppression and the Taliban's fear of education. This harsh reality solidified his mother's conviction that leaving was his only chance, even if it meant facing unknown dangers.

2. Forced Self-Reliance: Abandonment in Pakistan

I couldn’t ask for information or exchange a few friendly words, a few jokes that would make one of them want to help me, take me to his house, for instance, give me a cup of yogurt and a slice of cucumber.

Sudden solitude. After a three-day journey from Afghanistan, Enaiatollah's mother vanished from the samavat (a migrant hostel) in Quetta, Pakistan, leaving him alone at the age of ten. Kaka Rahim, the owner, delivered the crushing news: "She's not coming back." This abrupt abandonment forced Enaiatollah into immediate self-reliance, confronting a world where his language was barely understood and his vulnerability was palpable.

Learning to survive. Initially, Kaka Rahim offered him food and shelter in exchange for work, but no pay. Enaiatollah quickly learned the harsh realities of labor, from cleaning sewers to delivering tea. He then transitioned to street vending with Osta Sahib, where he earned his first money but also faced the moral dilemma of cheating to sell goods, a direct contradiction to his mother's teachings.

Finding community. Despite the challenges, Enaiatollah found camaraderie among other Hazara boys, particularly Sufi. This community offered protection against local gangs and shared resources for food. However, the constant threat of discrimination, violence (like being beaten for his Shia faith), and fundamentalist attacks (a mosque bombing he narrowly avoided) made Pakistan an unsustainable haven, pushing him to seek a new destination: Iran.

3. Survival in Iran: Labor, Fear, and Repatriation

The site wasn’t only our home. The site was our world. The site was our solar system.

A new world of work. Enaiatollah and Sufi arrived in Iran under a trafficker's debt, working on a construction site in Isfahan. The site became their entire world, a self-contained community of illegal laborers living in unfinished apartments. Here, Enaiatollah learned the building trade, from mixing plaster to hoisting materials, and began to earn and save money, burying his earnings in plastic bags around the site.

The shadow of "Telisia." The constant fear of the Iranian police and the dreaded "Telisia" or "Sang Safid" detention centers loomed large. These places, rumored to be concentration camps where refugees were brutalized or enslaved, kept workers confined to the site. Enaiatollah witnessed the psychological toll of this fear, and the stories of those who had gone mad after experiencing these camps.

Cycles of expulsion. Despite his efforts to build a life, Enaiatollah experienced the brutal reality of mass repatriations. Police raids on the construction site led to forced returns to the Afghan border, where he and others had to pay for their own expulsion. This cycle of working, saving, being caught, and paying to return, often through dangerous routes with drug smugglers, highlighted the precariousness of his existence and the constant threat of losing everything.

4. The Perilous Path: Mountains and False Bottoms to Turkey

I didn’t yet know that mountains can kill.

A desperate gamble. Driven by the relentless cycle of fear and repatriation in Iran, Enaiatollah decided to risk the journey to Turkey, a path known to be far more dangerous. With the help of friends who pooled their money, he prepared for a trek across treacherous mountains, buying sturdy shoes and warm clothes, unaware that even these preparations would prove insufficient against the brutal realities ahead.

The mountain's toll. The journey across the mountains was an agonizing, 26-day ordeal. Seventy-seven migrants began the trek, but twelve perished from cold, exhaustion, or abandonment. Enaiatollah witnessed the dehumanizing choices forced upon them, such as leaving a dying Bengali boy behind and a knife fight between a Kurd and a Pakistani. He even stole shoes from a frozen corpse, a stark testament to the desperate measures required for survival.

Suffocation in the dark. After the mountains, the journey continued in a false-bottom lorry, a space only fifty centimeters high, crammed with migrants. For three days, in suffocating darkness, Enaiatollah endured extreme thirst, the stench of urine, and the cries of a dying man. Upon arrival in Istanbul, he was so dehydrated and traumatized that he peed blood for weeks, a physical manifestation of the journey's brutal cost.

5. Crossing the Aegean: The Sea's Cruel Test

Our point of reference was a lighthouse on the Greek coast. But after a while we stopped seeing it.

A deceptive plan. In Istanbul, Enaiatollah, desperate for a way out, convinced a group of younger Afghan boys to take him to Greece, falsely claiming he spoke English. Their plan involved a small, overloaded dinghy and a perilous crossing of the Aegean Sea to the Greek island of Lesbos. The journey began with unexpected encounters with wild boars and dogs, foreshadowing the chaos to come.

The sea's fury. The crossing itself was a terrifying battle against the elements. High waves, a torn dinghy, and the inability to row effectively pushed them back towards Turkey. Amidst the struggle, a massive ship passed, its waves capsizing their small vessel and tragically sweeping Liaqat, one of their companions, into the dark sea. His disappearance underscored the immense vulnerability of their journey.

A beacon of hope. Exhausted and heartbroken, the remaining boys eventually fell asleep, only to wake at dawn to the sight of land. Rowing with renewed, painful effort, they spotted the Greek flag on a distant hill. This symbol of their arrival, despite the loss and suffering, marked the end of one terrifying chapter and the beginning of another uncertain one.

6. Athens Interlude: Olympics, Parks, and Deception

I swear that was the first and only time I’ve ever been inside a brothel.

A city of contrasts. Arriving in Mytilene, Enaiatollah, surprisingly clean and well-dressed thanks to a kind stranger, managed to buy a ferry ticket to Athens, much to the astonishment of other Afghan boys. Athens, a bustling city preparing for the 2004 Olympics, offered a temporary reprieve. Enaiatollah found work holding trees for the Olympic venues, earning a decent wage and experiencing a brief period of stability.

Park life and its perils. However, once the Olympics began, work dried up, and Enaiatollah, along with his friend Jamal and other Afghan boys, resorted to sleeping in parks. These parks, while offering a sense of community, also exposed them to dangers:

• Police raids that forced them to constantly move.
• Predatory men seeking young boys.
• The constant struggle for food, often relying on churches that demanded Bible readings in exchange for meals.

A cruel prank. Hearing rumors of a clinic offering political asylum for health reasons, Enaiatollah, ever hopeful, sought it out. To his shock and the amusement of his friends, he discovered it was a brothel, a cruel prank that highlighted his naivety and the harsh realities of his situation. This incident, though humiliating, further fueled his desire to leave Greece.

7. The Kindness of Strangers: Guiding Hands in Greece

In my opinion, kindness like that only gets handed on by example.

Unexpected compassion. After being separated from his friends and fleeing the police, Enaiatollah found himself alone and in his underpants. He stumbled upon a private courtyard where an old Greek lady, instead of turning him away, offered him food, a shower, and new clothes. Her silent acts of generosity, despite the language barrier, provided him with dignity and a renewed sense of hope.

A ticket to freedom. The old lady's kindness extended further when she took him to the bus station, bought him a ticket to Mytilene, and gave him fifty euros. This selfless act, a stark contrast to the exploitation he often faced, allowed him to continue his journey. Her actions exemplified the profound impact a single individual's compassion can have on a vulnerable person's life.

The Venice angel. Upon his arrival in Italy, another stranger, a young boy in Venice, became his guide. This "angel" helped him navigate the city, bought him food, found him new clothes at a church, and even purchased his train ticket to Rome. These repeated instances of unsolicited kindness from strangers, often at critical junctures, were pivotal in Enaiatollah's survival and his growing belief in the goodness of humanity.

8. Arrival in Italy: A New Hope, A New Home

You recognize it because you don’t feel like leaving. Not because it’s perfect, obviously. There aren’t any perfect places. But there are places where at least no one tries to hurt you.

A difficult crossing. Enaiatollah's journey to Italy was fraught with challenges. After numerous failed attempts to sneak onto lorries in Corinth, he finally succeeded by hiding in a container on a ship. This three-day ordeal, spent in the dark belly of the vessel, was a testament to his unwavering determination to reach Europe.

First steps in Italy. Landing in Venice, he was immediately struck by its beauty, a stark contrast to the harsh landscapes he had traversed. Guided by the kindness of strangers, he made his way to Rome, then Turin, where he reconnected with Payam, a childhood friend from Nava. This reunion, though initially awkward due to their changed circumstances, provided a crucial link to his past and a pathway to his future.

A family's embrace. Despite initial setbacks in finding official housing, Enaiatollah was eventually welcomed into the home of Danila and Marco, a foster family in Turin. This marked a profound shift from mere survival to finding a true home. Their natural kindness, the presence of their children and dogs, and the simple act of sharing meals at a table, offered him a sense of belonging he had long yearned for.

9. The Enduring Spirit: Resilience Through Constant Threat

I was small. I was smaller than the bullets, I thought, and faster. I was invisible, I thought, or as insubstantial as smoke.

A life of flight. From the moment his mother left him, Enaiatollah's life became a relentless series of escapes and adaptations. He constantly navigated dangerous borders, corrupt officials, and the ever-present threat of violence. His ability to quickly assess situations, make difficult decisions, and maintain a sense of self-preservation was honed through countless perilous encounters.

Physical and emotional scars. The journey left him with deep physical and emotional scars:

• A leg injury from a falling stone in Iran.
• Peeing blood after the false-bottom lorry in Turkey.
• The trauma of witnessing death and abandonment in the mountains.
• The constant fear of police, traffickers, and predators.
  Yet, he never allowed these experiences to break his spirit, always finding a way to move forward.

The power of a wish. Throughout his ordeal, his mother's teaching to "always have a wish in front of your eyes" proved to be a guiding principle. Whether it was the wish for safety, for work, for education, or to find his friend Payam, these aspirations fueled his resilience and provided the strength to pick himself up after every setback, transforming him from a naive child into a resourceful young man.

10. Finding Belonging: The Power of Family and Education

The thing they didn’t need to explain, because I already knew, was that we were going to get on well with each other.

A new beginning. Being fostered by Danila and Marco was the first step in Enaiatollah's "new life." It provided him with the stability and security he needed to pursue political asylum and build a future. The family's acceptance, despite his initial shyness and language barrier, created an environment where he could finally feel safe and valued.

The pursuit of knowledge. Education, denied to him in Afghanistan, became a cornerstone of his new life. He eagerly embraced the opportunity to attend school, enrolling in three courses at the Parini Adult Education Center and Italian classes at a youth group. This dedication to learning, despite his exhaustion, reflected his deep-seated desire for self-improvement and integration.

Language as connection. The language barrier, initially a source of frustration, gradually dissolved as he learned Italian. His foster family encouraged him to share his story, allowing him to process his experiences and connect with them on a deeper level. This process of sharing, learning, and being understood, cemented his sense of belonging and laid the foundation for a future where he could finally thrive, not just survive.