Part 1

Sisters

In the time of our history when the Songwriter Who Imagined was murdered in New York and the dictator Saddam invaded Iran, there was a girl who wanted to be as free as a boy in choosing her future. Her father, however, cared only that she marry a suitable young man. Her mother wanted peace all around. Despite his relentless nagging, the daughter refused an audience to any suitors who inquired. Soon it came to pass that the girl’s younger sister, who was demure and obedient, and to whom the elder sister was supremely devoted, fell in love with a suitable young man of her own and wanted to marry. The father, recognizing this as an auspicious opportunity, pronounced that he would allow the marriage of his younger daughter only when the elder daughter consented to marry as well. Much to everyone’s surprise, the elder daughter swiftly and dispassionately chose the next suitor in line. With great aplomb, the father sent invitations far and wide for a grand double wedding, at which point the elder daughter secretly visited a surgeon and had herself made barren—and therefore unmarriageable. The father, apoplectic with rage and determined not to lose face entirely, allowed the younger daughter to marry, but he disowned the elder one, who happily moved far away to pursue her desires.