Arabic

The phone rang so Sarah answered. Her face lit up. "Amani! How are you?" she said.

Tom had always thought his neighbor Amani had a quiet beauty. Although he and her husband Rashid had become fast friends when they came to the states 15 years ago, it took Amani much longer to warm to them. Now she and Sarah were close friends. Amani now called Sarah her "American Sister." As Rashid and Amani became a bit more Americanized, she slowly relaxed, even adopting some western style clothing. They were both relatively devout but seemed to stay somewhat ahead of their home country in terms of a woman's role and rights.

After a moment's thought, Tom rubbed the coin and concentrated. He couldn't help but picture the quiet, reserved young woman Amani had been when they first met. "I wish Sarah was a beautiful Saudi woman - like Amani."

Instantly she changed, her face unrecongnizable but still quite attractive. Her head and body were covered in an abaya, but it didn't distract from the piercing beauty of her eyes.

She continued smiling for a moment, then her expression changed to one of confusion. She half listened to Amani, nodding and finally saying "OK" before dropping the phone. She met Tom's gaze.

"Tom?" she started, then looked down at the abaya. "What did you change? Amani suddenly starting to talk like I lived with them. She said Rashid would..."

The opening of your front door interrupted the conversation. Rashid strolled casually into the room. "I am sorry for leaving you alone. I know I said it would be short - I did not think it would take a whole hour," he stated in perfect English. He winked at Tom. "I am sure you are fine but you know Sarah, she is still having trouble letting go of our family's more 'traditional' beliefs. I wanted you to have some time alone together, to get to know one another better - but I can see it was perhaps too much for Sarah to handle yet," he concluded, mistaking Sarah's confusion at the situation for being uncomfortable.

"Go on home now, Sarah," he told her. "You can tell Amani all about your first 'date'." He gave her a gentle nudge toward the door. She looked helplessly back at Tom as she left.

He turned back to Tom. "Granted our parents would be horrified at the possibility of Sarah with a non-Saudi - even worse, a non-Muslim. And here without a chaperone. Fortunately as the eldest brother I am now her guardian." He chuckled. "I should not tease her. She has had almost 30 years of being taught such things. While independent in her way, it will still take her time to adjust to America." He shook his head. "I do not mind that she holds some customs, but it should be because she believes and chooses, not because she was commanded. Amani and I have told her many times that even in Saudi Arabia the abaya is no longer mandated. But still she wears it always outside the home."

Tom was glad that Rashid was so talkative. He was desperately trying to piece together what his wish had done. By wishing that Sarah was 'like Amani', apparently he had inadvertently made her part of Rashid's family? He tried to shift his attention back as Rashid finished up.

"So Tom, if you are still interested, perhaps we can do a more formal chaperoned date to make Sarah comfortable? Tomorrow at 7?" Rashid offered thought it sounded like he was already making the plans.

"Uh, sure thing, that sounds great," Tom answered. He ushered Rashid out, nodding as he continued to talk about his hopes for Sarah & Tom to 'hit it off.'

Tom breathed a sigh of relief as soon as the door closed. "Wow, ok... what to do now?" he asked himself. Before he could collect his thoughts, his phone beeped - he had a text from Sarah!

It read: "Tom, help! I think I'm Rashid's sister. Amani is all over me, mothering. I ran to the bathroom when she started talking in Arabic. Do something! I don't know what's going on."

Tom felt a pang of sympathy mixed with humor as he imagined her panic. He briefly debated reversing the wish, but the conversation with Rashid now made him very curious - 'dating' Sarah when she was much like Amani after her arrival could be interesting. But he couldn't let her suffer. Quickly deciding, he made a wish: "I wish Sarah had all the appropriate memories, knowledge, skills for this life - whatever she needs to be this Sarah. But that she keeps her knowledge of who she truly is and our life together."