I hear ya, Satrapi

Page 1
This event occurred shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union in one of its Central Asian republics such as Tajikistan. Tajikistan has two major cultural groups which consist of the Khulobs who live close to the capital in the west and the Pamiris who live in the east. Both groups sought control of Tajikistan and after the fact that the Soviet Union withdrew its power from Tajikistan it caused a civil war. The two groups also attempted to at the same time drive out Russians and other minority groups from their country. One minority group who underwent the effects of the civil war will be mainly involved in this story.

Panel A: It has been a year after the fall of the Soviet Union and the start of the civil war in Tajikistan (symbols, flags, fighting, etc.).

Page 2
Panel A: Everyone is at home at night in a suburban part of Tajikistan’s capital. The father and the grandmother are watching T.V. in the living room.

Grandma: “You and your T.V., watching it 24/7”.

Father: “Now is the best moment to watch”.

Grandma: “At-least put the volume down, the kids are sleeping”.

T.V. audio: “Goal!”.

Panel B: The mother is in the kitchen washing dishes thinking; maybe she should go outside for some air.

Panel C: The two children are sleeping in their bedroom. The brother and the eldest sister are sleeping ZzZzZzz (Bubble).

Panel D: The youngest sister is missing from her sleep, wondering around the house.

Page 3

Panel A: Outside the house, the family dog is making slow-pitched hollow sounds.

Dog: “WUF . . . WUF”.

Panel B: Outside the gate of the house.

Masked Man #1: “I’ll boost you up”.

MM#2: “Be careful not to make noise, the gate is clanking . . . The dog is barking too”.

Panel C: Dog approaches house.

Dog: “WUF. WUF... WUUUF!”.

Panel D: The Grandma approaches the window wondering why the dog is barking and sees it coming up to the porch barking. Then she suddenly witnesses the masked men climbing over the high gate. With feelings of terror and shock she utters to the father: “THEY’VE COME!”.
Page 4

Panel A: The father with a consciousness focused too much on T.V. is unprepared as they approach the door dressed in black and break the lock.

Panel B: The father takes out his hand
Father: “Hey Brother!”.

Panel C: MM#1 responds: “Brother, Who?” then pushes the father and grabs the phone cord nearest the sofa.

Panel D: MM#1 begins to choke the father using the phone cord while the father is lying on the floor after being pushed.

Page 5

Panel A: Center focus on Grandma pointing
Grandma yells: “Take the T.V.! It’s Made in Japan! Don’t take my son’s life!”.

Panel B: MM#2 approaches the kitchen with his custom knife-compatible Kalashnikov and encounters the mother in an aggressive, threatening and demanding way.

MM#2: “Give me all your money!” Mother “I don’t have any!”.

Panel C: MM#2 slashes the mother with his rifle leaving a deep fleshy wound several centimeters long and striking the rifle’s wooden end plate to her head. The mother screams and falls unconscious.

Panel D: After the scream MM#1&2 flee the house taking nothing along with them except leaving a trace of their terrorist acts that will never be forgotten to the eyes of the residents living there.
Page 6

Panel A: During the Masked Men’s flee out of the house, the father runs to the cabinet and takes out a blank firing pistol and fires at the Masked Men outside in the yard as to scare them and they jump over the gate simultaneously as the gun fires.

Panel B: The Grandma walks quickly around the house looking for the youngest (four year old) child while shouting out her name knowing that she was not sleeping and begins to panic thinking that the child has been kidnapped.

Panel C: The father and the grandma approach the kitchen and find the mother with her wound, after the mother recovers with a splash of water the grandma tells the family that the child is missing and then suddenly the child quietly slides out from behind the kitchen refrigerator sobbing in a fearful way.

Panel D: The next day the neighbors come and help the mother to the hospital to have her wound sewn.
Page 7
Panel A: That same day the police arrives asking questions about last night as to where did the family members get the blank firing gun instead of asking about the events of the situation, if everyone is okay, if anyone was hurt and if possible the description of the criminals.

Panel B: The police leave. The father thinks to himself “We should seek political asylum in the United States as refugees from this currently unstable country”.

[This post is a little more than 2 pages in length on Microsoft Word]