My story does not begin with success. It begins with loss, struggle, and a dream that refused to disappear.
I am a Pashtoon girl from an educated family that deeply valued learning. My father was an electrical engineer, but he chose to become an engineering educator. Teaching was not just his profession it was his purpose. He believed that education could transform lives, and he constantly encouraged me to learn, grow, and believe in myself.
He used to say that a seed cannot grow without the right environment. I did not fully understand those words then, but life would soon teach me their meaning. In 2021, my father passed away. He was my greatest supporter and the foundation of my dreams. Losing him left a silence in my life that could never truly be filled.
Only a few months later, everything around me changed. Girls were no longer allowed to go to school. It felt as if my future had been taken away overnight. But even in that darkness, I held on to what my father had taught me.
I continued studying through a shadow school, where learning came with risk and uncertainty. Every day carried fear, but also determination. I knew that education was my only path forward.
Eventually, I had no choice but to find an alternative path. I turned to the GED, an American high school diploma, as a way to continue toward higher education. This journey was one of the most challenging periods of my life. With limited resources, no structured system, and constant obstacles, I often felt overwhelmed. But I kept going.
During this time, something unexpected happened. While my physical environment was restricted, a new kind of environment began to form around me one built by people I had never met in person. Volunteer teachers gave me guidance, encouragement, and knowledge. They helped create a virtual space where I could continue to grow, even when the world around me was closing in.
My family also became my strongest support system. My mother, despite being illiterate, showed extraordinary courage by allowing me to continue my education and supporting me through processes she had never experienced herself. My siblings stood beside me, encouraging me at every step. And my elder sister, who broke barriers and traditions, paving a path forward for me as a pioneer. Without her courage, my journey would have been even more difficult.
I studied for long hours every day, holding on to the belief that this effort could open a door. After months of persistence, I passed all my exams at the age of 16. This achievement was not just mine it was the result of every person who had helped create an environment where I could keep learning.
Today, at 17, I am studying computer science at an American online university. This opportunity would not have been possible without the generosity of the University of the People, which offers scholarships to Afghan girls opportunities that are rare even within our own country. Their support has made higher education accessible to me when it otherwise would have been out of reach.
Although I have the opportunity to study online, I was unable to pursue in-person education due to immigration backlogs that prevented me from accessing opportunities abroad. Even so, I continue to move forward with what is available to me.
Alongside my studies, I work as an online freelance teacher, sharing knowledge with others in my own way. In doing so, I feel connected to my father and the passion he carried for education.
This journey has never been mine alone. It is built on the strength of my family, the courage of my sister, the kindness of strangers, and the support of institutions that believed in students like me.
Today, I carry not only my own dreams, but also my father’s. I want to continue learning, growing, and creating opportunities not just for myself, but for every girl who is told she cannot.
My story is one of pain, but also of resilience. It is a reminder that even when the environment is taken away, it can be rebuilt through people, through support, and through the refusal to give up.
And I am not finished yet.
~ Zahra
