very scary to share so many personal things in front of so many people,” Lina said.“ But I think in that moment I understood that this is important and this is the message [ sharing the oppression faced by girls and women in Afghanistan ] I want to be sharing.”
Take every opportunity. There are so many things inside of school but outside of the class that you can learn— all these clubs, all these sports. Taking all those opportunities will show you your way. – Hela, Grade 12
That same courage led her to try new things outside of class, including Chess Club and cross-country, an experience that was physically and emotionally challenging after years of being largely confined at home.“ Imagine coming from Afghanistan, where you haven’ t left home in three years, and you’ ve always been stuck in your room, and all of a sudden getting into cross-country,” said Lina. She remembers running in the cold and rain, climbing hills, and feeling her chest burn from the effort. She also remembers the satisfaction of doing something difficult with others.“ It was such a cool experience getting to do it with a bunch of other people,” she said.
When asked what Crofton House has meant to her, Lina described the answer as layered. Crofton House gave Lina space to ask larger questions: who she is, what kind of life she wants to build, and what kind of impact she hopes to have.
It meant the opportunity to go to school. Coming from Afghanistan, that carried a deeper significance.“ I am the only one now from my family who
is still going to school,” she said.“ All of my brothers and sisters graduated, but they are older than me, and they have kids. Now I look back, and all of their kids, and my classmates, my best friends, are unable to go to school.”
FINDING COURAGE THROUGH OPPORTUNITY
For Hela, coming to Crofton House meant learning to make a home in a place that was entirely new. Before arriving in Vancouver, she had been living with her parents in Pakistan. After nearly two days of travel, the experience was dreamlike.“ It’ s like the feeling of being in the middle of the sky, and you don’ t feel anything,” Hela said.“ My parents are not here. Nobody’ s here. Everything is new. Language is new.”
The transition was eased by the support around her.“ I had all the support from Crofton House, which made it 10 times easier for me to be here,” Hela said.
At CHS, Hela encountered new subjects, new ways of learning, and
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