Chapter 14 of Memoir of a Wandering Spirit is finished.

It takes Kacper deep into his Afghanistan experience — a place and a moment in his life that would etch themselves permanently into his memory. These pages are not just about conflict, but about the fragile humanity that persists in its shadow.

The chapter begins with his arrival — the long road into Kabul — where the city reveals itself for the first time, held between mountains and history, dust and expectation. From there, Kacper steps into the heart of humanitarian work: crowded wards, bustling streets, and moments that defy easy understanding.

Excerpt 1 — The Road into Kabul

The Land Cruiser climbed the last bend, and Kabul spread out beneath them — a sprawl of tan and dust, hemmed in by jagged mountains the colour of old bone. The air was sharp, almost brittle, as if it might break in his lungs. Somewhere below, the streets were already moving: men in long coats hurrying to work, women in blue burqas threading through the crowds, the clatter of carts and the call of vendors rising like a single breath. It was his first glimpse of a city he had only read about — and yet, even before he stepped onto its streets, he sensed it would not let him leave unchanged.

Kacper learns the rhythms of life in the humanitarian compounds, the careful coordination behind each intervention, and the weight of small victories — a child gaining weight, a hospital ward stabilising after a long week. He walks the streets in the early mornings, when Kabul is at its most tender.

Excerpt 2 — The Children in the Ward

In the nutrition ward of the Indira Gandhi Hospital, beds stood so close that Kacper could reach from one to another without moving his feet. The air was heavy with the scent of disinfectant, sweat, and the faint sweetness of milk powder. Babies lay bundled in blankets, their ribs sharp against his palms when he lifted them. Mothers sat cross-legged at their sides, eyes hollow from too many sleepless nights. And yet, every so often, a smile would break across a face — a small, defiant act that said, not today. Those moments felt like sunlight in a windowless room.

Excerpt 3 — The Streets at Dawn

Before the city woke fully, Kacper liked to walk the narrow streets near his guesthouse. There were no car horns yet, only the scrape of a broom on stone and the soft hum of someone boiling tea behind a shuttered window. From a nearby mosque, the call to prayer unfurled into the pale sky. For a few precious minutes, Kabul belonged not to politics, or war, or hunger — but to the people who lived quietly between the headlines.

But Kabul was also a place where silence carried weight. A visit to Ghazi Stadium would stay with him for the rest of his life — not because of what he saw, but because of what it revealed about cruelty, kindness, and the shadows they cast.

Excerpt 4 — Ghazi Stadium

From far away, the sound of the crowd swelled, breaking and reforming in waves. He thought of the women — not as the condemned, not as names on a charge sheet, but as daughters, sisters, mothers. He wondered about their last sight of the sky. Afghanistan had taught him many things, but that day it taught him this: cruelty can wear the face of your neighbour, and kindness can live in the same heart that has seen too much to know the difference. And perhaps the hardest truth of all — that some things you carry away from a place are not its mountains.

Perhaps the deepest lesson came from his Afghan colleagues — especially Jawed — who reminded him that being present in a country like Afghanistan required more than skills or good intentions.

Excerpt 5 — The Lesson from Jawed

One evening, Jawed leaned back in his chair and said, “You must understand — this place has had too many teachers who came to teach, but never to learn.” His words landed quietly, without accusation, but with weight. Kacper realised he had been speaking more than listening, explaining more than asking. That night, as the oil lamp flickered between them, he promised himself that in Afghanistan, he would first be a student.

Chapter 14 is a journey into a city and a country under immense strain — but also into the resilience of those who call it home. Now, with this chapter closed, Kacper’s path will carry him into the next stages of his work, where each step forward is shaped by what Afghanistan has taught him.

Picture gallery associated to this chapter.