Familiar

My parents took me out for breakfast this morning, and as we were idling through the newspapers waiting for our coffees to arrive...


My Dad: Ah, I see Chris is at it again.

Me: What?

My Dad: This thing about the Taliban.



Me: What on earth are you talking about?

My Dad: You know, Chris. Your cousin's husband. The one in the SAS.

Me: Oh, of course. Wow.

My Dad: Wow?

Me: For a moment there I was wondering, "How do my parents know someone in the Taliban named Chris?"


There followed many troubling mental images of my mother knitting warm cardigans for the mujahideen, and my father telling Muhammad Amjad Khan to tuck in his shirt.