2. Acceptance

Onward we traveled, and we found ourselves in an unreal place, an Afghan village in Bamiyan Valley. The Afghans there were very much like Bedouins—simple, cheerful, and friendly. They were also smoking a bit, which gave them a relaxed, unconventional outlook on things.
Through experiences we explored alternative perspectives. This was evident in our journeys and in our smoking habits, we smoked grass. In the valley of Bamiyan, there are enormous Buddha statues carved into the cliffs, with the largest toe being as tall as me. Inside the cliffs, there were numerous caves connected by steps. We lived in these caves for two weeks. The caves had steps inside the cliffs, and you could sit on the flat head of the Buddha, overlooking Afghanistan. We didn't worry about what might happen. The Afghans were great; they liked us because we were wild. We smoked with them, joked, played with the kids, and found ourselves fitting in, not as tourists but more as part of the community.
One day, while we were having tea on the main street of a nearby village, a lorry arrived with wood for the village. The lorry tried to enter a narrow entrance but got stuck because the wood was sticking out the back and hit a house. The driver got out and started sawing the wood to free the lorry. The villagers, seeing this, became upset because it was their wood, meant for building. They all jumped on the driver, and we thought they were going to kill him.
There was a big commotion with turbans flying and people shouting. When the dust settled, we saw everyone sitting around, including the driver, who was now without his trousers and laughing. The whole scene was like children playing. The Afghans were like kids, and we felt a strong sense of brotherhood with acceptance towards us. They accepted us completely, not just because of the money we gave them, and we were happy to support them a little bit, but because of the genuine connection we shared. It was a wild trip, not with a sense of a spiritual path, but as backpackers and there were very few of them around. In the east I found that ‘Craziness’, all types of people, approaches, rituals and behaviors, all are accepted.