Escaping the Taliban: Malyar’s Journey from Kabul to America

Malyar Meraj shares his journey from growing up in Kabul, Afghanistan, to
starting a new life in the U.S. after working with the U.S. military put his life
at risk. Facing Taliban threats, he sought safety through a Special Immigrant
Visa and arrived in the U.S. in 2017. Adjusting to a new culture and working
long hours, he gradually found his footing, earning a supervisory role and
balancing the demands of raising three young children with his wife. He
expresses a deep love for Afghanistan but remains critical of the Taliban’s
oppressive policies.

Malyar’s story is marked by acts of courage, both in dangerous situations in
Afghanistan and in navigating the challenges of building a life in a new
country. He draws inspiration from others who stand up against oppression,
like a recently killed Pashtun activist, and hopes to visit his homeland again if
the Taliban regime ends. His experiences offer a powerful reminder of
resilience and the courage it takes to rebuild in the face of adversity.

Thank you for listening! We hope you feel inspired and encouraged by our conversation today. If you did, be sure to share this episode with others.

Let’s stay in touch:

• Follow us on Instagram @crossroadsapologetics
• Email us at info@crossroadsapologetics.org
• Visit our website www.crossroadsapologetics.org

See you in the next episode! Be blessed!

Full Transcript

Intro:
Welcome to Courageous by Crossroads Apologetics, a look into what motivates us to step out in courage and the everyday bravery of men and women like you. In each episode, we hear a personal story of bravery centered around this question. What’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? And now your host, founder of Crossroads Apologetics, Jeff Johnson. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay, I apologize for a little bit of a lengthy introduction here, but you got to know how I came to meet my next guest, Malyar Mirage. This gentleman’s name and you’ll hear in the podcast. This is only the third time that I’ve met him. The first time I met him was when I showed up at his house, that’s close to where I live, to pick up a car that I had rented through a person to person car rental service. Some of you may be familiar with such services. Anyway, my truck was in the shop and had to have some work done and I was on my way to a trip that was over 800 miles round trip, and I just wanted to rent a different car. So anyway, I looked at a whole bunch of different ones and I ended up renting this car. 

Jeff Johnson:
So I showed up to him with very little time to spare. So I needed to get in the vehicle and get on my way without too much delay. And when I showed up, the car that I’d rented was a black Cadillac cte. It was nice little car, wonderful car, impeccable, beautiful, polished up nice. And the young man, Miraj, was nice looking, young guy was sitting on his front step of his little house and the car was in the driveway. And I noticed right away when I pulled up to the car, they had a giant decal on the back windshield of the car and it had Aramaic writing on it. And it had what looked to be the outline of a mosque on it and it had a couple of flags on it, which I discerned easily as Afghanistan flags. 

Jeff Johnson:
So it was strange to rent a car that had such a big sticker on it. I mean, I normally wouldn’t rent a car and you wouldn’t expect to find a big sticker on it, you know, let alone, you know, promoting South Dakota or whatever. But this was very profound. Sticker on the back of the car. So anyway, I got in the car and said my goodbyes to Miraj and took off on my trip without a word spoken about the sticker on the back. I went on my trip. I was gone for four days. While I was gone, I reached out to a friend of mine who’s in Iraq who speaks Aramaic, and I Asked her what the sticker meant. I couldn’t read the writing. 

Jeff Johnson:
And she said, it talks about there is no God but Allah and a date for the founding of the country of Afghanistan. She said, jeff, it clearly identifies the driver of the car as being a Muslim person, which I’m not. I’m a Christian. And it says, it clearly identifies the driver of the car as being a Muslim. And then Hamdia, who’s dear to me and she’s a lovely lady, she said, don’t let them confuse you for being part of the Taliban. Ha ha ha. So that’s what she said. Had some other Christian friends of mine. I sent them the same information and told them what the sticker said in the back of the car. And they said, can you get a different car? It of funny. So anyway, it was just strange. The human condition was just very strange. So I was on my. 

Jeff Johnson:
The car did well. Anyway, I got back from my trip and I dropped the car back off at Mirage at a appointed time. And I said to him, I got along great with the car, whatever, blah, blah. And I got around to the back of the car and I said, hope you don’t mind. I said, I stopped off and I got this giant decal sticker and I put it on the back windshield of the car, and the corners of his mouth turned up and he started to chuckle. And I said to him that I had found out what the sticker said, but I was still curious why it was there. Anyway, that turned into a longer conversation, which you’re going to hear in this podcast interview. 

Jeff Johnson:
But suffice to say, I discerned right away that he’s probably a man of great courage, and he was in the United States because he had to be, and he was blessed to be, but he had to because people in his country meant him harm. And so, anyway, I told him, how about you come over and do this podcast episode with me over at my house, and I’ll ask you the question, what’s the most courageous thing you’ve ever done? He said, oh, Jeff, I’ve got a lot of things that I could probably share with you. And I said, well, you come over and I’ll ask you the question. We’ll record the podcast, and then after that we’ll just be friends for the rest of our life. How’s that sound? He said, that sounds good. 

Jeff Johnson:
So a Muslim man and a guy running a Christian podcast got together and recorded this upcoming episode. And I think you’ll find it fascinating. I hope it blesses you and just remember that God’s got a great big world full of people that he loves so much. And what a blessing that we get to interact with each other and influence each other and care for one another. So I really think you’re going to enjoy this podcast and this is going to be one of several because I meant what I said. Mirage and I are going to be friends for a long time now, God willing. So there will be many follow ups. But enough of that. We started off when he walked into my home office here where I record the podcast. I’ve got just loads of books. I should show you a picture sometime. 

Jeff Johnson:
There’s just books all over the place. And he said, so you like to read? And I said, yeah, I really love to read. And I asked him if he liked to read too, and he said he didn’t. He didn’t read so much. He wasn’t a very good reader. And that’s kind of where this podcast kicks off. So we’ll jump right in. 

Malyar Meraj:
Since my school days, I’m not new friend Mirage, a big reader. Till 9th grade, I was a very good student. You know, I was getting first and second or third grade, but after ninth, you know, I don’t know what happened. I just stop studying for some reason. I don’t know why that you lost interest in it and I lost interest in it. Yeah, I lost interest in it. And I had a couple of friends that they were not a good readers too. Not a very good students either, you know, And I think they changed me. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So since then I was not reading. And then I went to college. And college I studied bba, Bachelor in Business Administration for two years. 

Jeff Johnson:
But you had to do some reading there. 

Malyar Meraj:
I had to do some reading there. But then because of a lot of responsibilities, family, you know, all this stuff, I had to go start working with US military. So, yeah, since then. 

Jeff Johnson:
So where did you go to college? 

Malyar Meraj:
I went to college in a. Kabul, Afghanistan. 

Jeff Johnson:
In Kabul? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And what’s the university called there? 

Malyar Meraj:
The Rana University. It’s called Rana. 

Jeff Johnson:
Is it still. 

Malyar Meraj:
It’s still there, still going? Yeah, it’s still going. 

Jeff Johnson:
Is that, is it a long established university? I don’t know anything about the country of Afghanistan other than things that I’ve heard in the news. 

Malyar Meraj:
So, yeah, it’s not a very long established university, but it’s. So it’s one of them, one of the universities over there that has been doing good. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. But not a very big one. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. So I wanted, I want to know about You. This is fascinating. So I’ve met you twice. This is the third time I’ve met you. Now, the first time is when I met you to pick up your car, which I rented through a private rental service to take to northern Wisconsin on a golf trip of mine. Cadillac cte. You got a beautiful car. And the second time was when I dropped the car back off and handed you the keys. And that’s when we kind of got to know each other just a little tiny bit. And so this is just the third time. And then I invited you to be on the podcast for reasons that will become obvious as we go on here. But tell me about. Did you grow up in Afghanistan? Are you native born to Afghanistan? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. So I grew up in Afghanistan. I was born in Kabul. I’m actually from Coast Province, Afghanistan, but I was born in Kabul, and I was raised in Kabul. I grew up in Kabul. I went to school and college in Kabul. I graduated high school, but never graduated college. And then because of family responsibility, I had to start working with the US military at very young age. I was 17 years old. So I worked with US military for a year. And then I decided to go to college to get a degree. But then again, a lot of responsibilities hit, and I studied for, like, two years in college. I couldn’t really keep up with it. I was missing a lot of days, you know, work, home, responsibilities, all that. Then I had to quit. But the thing is that I never got my degree. 

Jeff Johnson:
You were being stretched too thin. Do you want to finish your degree? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes, I want to finish my degree. Because nowadays, you know, it’s very good to have a degree, you know, to have a good job. But the thing is that, you know, life here in America is not so easy. You know, I have three kids. And, you know, having three kids is a lot of responsibility itself, for sure. Yeah. So how old are your kids? They’re five. Three and a half. One and a half. 

Jeff Johnson:
You’re busy. 

Malyar Meraj:
You’re a busy man. True. 

Jeff Johnson:
And I. And I trust that you marry very well. Your wife is busy, busy, too. 

Malyar Meraj:
I would imagine she’s busy, too. Yeah, true. Yeah. But my wife, she graduated from college. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
In Afghanistan. 

Malyar Meraj:
In Afghanistan. And that’s where I met her. I met her and college. And then were together for probably a year. And then finally we got married. That’s a long story. But we finally, after a year and a half, we got married. 

Jeff Johnson:
I might invite you back for multiple episodes of this podcast, if you don’t mind, because, yeah, this is. You’re you’re fascinating to me already. Do you have siblings? Do you have brothers and sisters? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. So I have two brothers here with me. They got to United States two years ago when Taliban took over. So we had to work very hard. Thanks to the State Department, they finally brought them over. So the only people that were left over from us was my two little brothers and my parents. So my brother lives in Texas. He’s an active army surgeon. My sister lives in Virginia. My two brothers. So my brother has been here for almost probably more than 15 years. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Long time. 

Malyar Meraj:
A long time. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
You said you. You said you came over in 2018. 

Malyar Meraj:
I came over at the December of 2017. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
December 2017. And you said you obtained your citizenship, your U.S. Citizenship in 2022. 

Malyar Meraj:
In. It was in 2022. Yeah, the beginning of 2022, I got my citizenship. 

Jeff Johnson:
Is that the same for your brothers? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So for my brothers, it’s a little different because we work with the US Military. We came through, they call a special program siv. We came through the SIV program, which is Special Immigrant Visa. When we come here, they give us green cards right away because we work with them. Our life was in danger, and they brought us here. But for my brother, it’s a little different because they came through us, because of us, their life was in danger over there. So now, after finally two years, they’re eligible for green cards. 

Jeff Johnson:
They weren’t working for the military because you were. The Taliban wanted to kill them. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So that’s why they brought them over, too. 

Jeff Johnson:
So. 

Malyar Meraj:
And that’s a very long story, too, you know, when Taliban took over, how we send them places to places when Taliban came. Came to our home looking for them, we had to send them from one province to another, and then finally got them out of there. From Mazar to Qatar, then to Abu Dhabi. They stayed in the camp over there for nine months, and then they came here. So there’s so many things there, too, you know. Wow. 

Jeff Johnson:
So you’re a Muslim man. Is that your faith? Yes, I am a Muslim, and so I’m a Christian. So the interesting thing, and again, the audience will hear about this in the beginning, is there was a. There was a large decal on the back of your car that indicated the country of Afghanistan and indicated the Muslim religion. So it was interesting for me, as a Christian, to be driving a car that clearly indicated the driver was a Muslim. So that became a funny thing, right? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So, you know, when I had a friend, he had to pick me up from airport yesterday. And I was telling him the same thing. I like, you know, that’s a couple. I’m pretty sure they’re Christian. And I have that logo, you know, on the back of my car. Like, I don’t know if they’re going to notice that or not. And were laughing on the way back from airport. I like, man, you got to remove that. 

Jeff Johnson:
But you said that you put that logo on the back because that represented the country of Afghanistan that you love. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. 

Jeff Johnson:
Before the Taliban took over. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, before that was a logo. That is a logo of previous government. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So just because of the love that I have to Afghanistan, you know, because I was born and raised there, Sure, I have so many good memories and also bad memories. But overall, it’s my country and I love my country. So, yeah, that’s why I put that logo on the back of my car. But when I put that logo on the back of my car, I wasn’t doing this business. So. Yeah, after probably a year later, you. 

Jeff Johnson:
Weren’T planning on renting the cab? 

Malyar Meraj:
No, I wasn’t planning on it. And then after a while, then I decided to ring down and the logo is still there. Wow. I didn’t remove it. 

Jeff Johnson:
It’s just such an interesting story. Well, I don’t have any. I don’t even think I have any Christian logos on the back of my pickup truck, but maybe I’ll put some on there sometime and then I’ll let you drive my pickup truck around for a while. So then we’ll be even. 

Malyar Meraj:
Did you see how it be? 

Jeff Johnson:
So then we’ll be even. Okay. So when. When the Taliban came and took over in your country, you said you. What I’d like you to talk about is the transition from you going to college and being in school and then working for the military. How did that come about? 

Malyar Meraj:
So when I graduated from school. 

Jeff Johnson:
High school. 

Malyar Meraj:
From high school. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. When I graduated from high school, I had a relative. I was looking for a job. He called me. I like, we’re working with the State Corps. If you want, you can come and join us. I was like, oh, yeah, definitely. I’m looking for a job. You know, Afghanistan is a poor country, and I was born in a poor family as well. You know, I wanted to do something like how my brother did. My brother was an interpreter for the US Military for so many years. And then he came to United States and then he joined the military. He went back to Afghanistan. They deployed him to Afghanistan. I wanted to do the same thing because I Saw my brother, you know, he was making something for living, and he was living not a bad life. 

Malyar Meraj:
I’m like, yeah, I’m gonna do it, you know, I’m gonna work for the US Military. So I started working with them. Then over this five years that I worked with them. I work with so many different positions. I worked some really good jobs too. 

Jeff Johnson:
And what kind of things are you doing? Interpreting. 

Malyar Meraj:
So I was not in. I was doing interpreter, but a very little bit. So the actual thing that were doing, that were building bases, military bases. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
And then later after went into the. We were building transmission projects as well, you know, taking electricity power from one province to another province. So we did like more than $350 million project for the US military. 

Jeff Johnson:
You’re part of a construction. 

Malyar Meraj:
Part of a construction, but you’re not. 

Jeff Johnson:
Working for a general contractor. You’re working for the US Military. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. Directly paid by the US Directly paid by them? Yeah, yeah, directly paid by them. So finally. Well, there was, between that time, there was so many projects that were doing, but in those project, there was, you know, when were running from one place to another place, you know, because Afghanistan was not very safe, there was so many things happening on the way on the project. You know, bomb blast, you know, there was RPGs coming to the sometime to the project that it was hitting some people killed, you know. So a lot of stuff in the. 

Jeff Johnson:
Projects that you’re working on? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes, in the project that were working. So like a lot of stories like that would never end. You know, there’s so many of that. So then finally, I’ll make it short. So after five years I worked with them and then everybody find out that they work with the US military. And then I applied for the siv. So there was a guy, his name was Thomas. I was like, now everybody knows that I work with you guys, you know, and my life is kinda. I don’t feel very safe, you know, moving around because all my relative, they know about everybody. So, you know, like, all right, we’re gonna take it to us. So then, so wait a second. 

Jeff Johnson:
So the Taliban found out that you were working for the U.S. Military? Yes. And what were the threats? Or did you just understand the. 

Malyar Meraj:
No. So the threat is pretty simple. You die once they have a chance, you know, they’re gonna kill you. 

Jeff Johnson:
If we find out you’re working for the US military, you’re dead. 

Malyar Meraj:
You’re dead. Once they have the chance, they’re not gonna miss their chance. They’re gonna Kill you. 

Jeff Johnson:
How many people were working for the. How many indigenous Afghanis were working for the US Military? I mean, was that true with all of them? 

Malyar Meraj:
No, with all of them were not true. But were directly. There was some people that they were indirectly involved in the projects, but were directly involved in the project, directly working for the US Military. So our life was way more in danger than theirs. I have some of my colleagues here with me in Chicago that they came over to. We were all working in the same office. So like I said, after five years, when that. Actually, when that revealed that I’m working with the US Military. So I talked to that guy, and he gave me a recommendation later, and my office gave me an HR letter. So I applied for the hiv, and it took me probably a year and a half. That whole process took me a year and a half. 

Malyar Meraj:
And then finally I made it at the end of 2017 to United. 

Jeff Johnson:
So you might. So for a year and a half, you’re soliciting to get into the United States because they want to kill you. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. 

Jeff Johnson:
In Afghanistan. So how are you conducting your affairs for a year and a half in Afghanistan when you know that you’ve got a bounty on your head? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So in the city, there was not a big threat because I was living in the city, but the problem was that I had to just live in the city. I couldn’t go out somewhere else. Like I said, you know, you go. 

Jeff Johnson:
Outside of Kabul in your. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, I go outside of the coast, especially the province that I belong to, you know, which is coast. I couldn’t go to host because everybody knew about that, about my relation with the US Government. So, you know, stuff like that. When you’re. You. You. You just need to be in the city. You’re not able to go anywhere else. You know, that life is not so easy. Like, let’s say you’re just living in Des Moines. That said, you cannot go out of Des Moines. If you go out of Des Moines, you know you’re gonna be in danger. 

Jeff Johnson:
Right, Right. 

Malyar Meraj:
So. 

Jeff Johnson:
Which I couldn’t imagine. Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
Even hard to imagine. It’s like a big prison, you know? 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. Okay. Can I show you a little bit of my ignorance, Malyar? Forgive me for that, but there’s something that I want to understand. What is the relationship between indigenous Afghanis and the Taliban? Because it seems as though you wouldn’t be in support of what the Taliban are all about in Afghanistan. You didn’t like what they were doing, but you were looking for an opportunity to better yourself. Because you’re living in poverty, and so you need to get out of that. So that’s why you take an opportunity to work with the US Government. Are you making a determination on which is better? The US Government versus the Taliban, or are you just taking advantage of a job opportunity and the Taliban just don’t like it, or. 

Jeff Johnson:
I’m trying to get a feel for what a typical Afghani would think of the Taliban coming and taking over their country. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, I know where you’re coming from. So at the time, you know, when you’re, like, at 17, 18 years old, pretty young, you don’t understand a lot of stuff very well, you know, but at the time, I was just looking for opportunity, you know, to make money, to get my family out of poverty and to make a good living for myself. But later on, you know, when the time was passing, I was growing up, you know, more things were making more sense for me. And then slowly, you know, I’m like, what are these guys doing? Like, why are they killing innocent people? You know, why are they doing all these bomb blasts? There were so many friends, relatives, that they were. They killed them in bomb blasts and in a lot of places, so slowly. 

Malyar Meraj:
Because when I was growing up and doing their stuff, I became against them. And even right now, the stuff that they’re doing in Afghanistan, I am, like, against every single thing that they’re up to right now, like, they’re doing. Maybe media has been showing some of him, but some of him. The media don’t show a little. Little things like here and there. Like, I’m against every single thing that they’re doing right. Right there. And I’m like, right now, it’s. I think Afghanistan is becoming North Korea, like, a little North Korea, you know, like, they’re just putting everybody in a huge prison. You know, they’re making rules from nowhere, you know, that women should not. Women should not continue their studies, you know, after sixth grade. Yeah, from sixth grade, they’re allowing them until sixth grade, but not after sixth grade. 

Malyar Meraj:
And so many more things like that. Like, if they. If they would see some guys, some young guys in the park, they would go to them, like, what are you guys doing here? You know, like, what is this? You’re gonna go see some guys and in the park, they’re just chilling out, and you’re gonna go to them and you’re just, what are you guys doing there? Good. Go do your job. Go to your home. Like, what is that? It just makes no sense. 

Jeff Johnson:
The talent would be. Would be against recreation True. Wow. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. So there’s hundreds of things like this more that we’re all against. 

Jeff Johnson:
So is the Taliban. And again, forgive me, because I’m just trying to educate myself here. Are they representing the Muslim faith? Misrepresenting the Muslim faith? 

Malyar Meraj:
No, they’re not. 

Jeff Johnson:
Because from my understanding, they are their religion, and their faith is a driver for what they’re doing. 

Malyar Meraj:
No, they’re not. Not at all. Because in Muslim faith, they say that women and men, they both have the right to study, to educate themselves, but they are stopping women from education. Right. So do you think that’s Muslim faith? It’s not at all, because Islam tells us that women and men should educate themselves for a good life, but they’re stopping women from education. So, like. Like this many more things, like I would say, and that’s 100% true. They’re not representing Islam. That’s one thing for sure. I know a lot of people mistaken that they think that these guys are representing Islam, but no, they’re not. Yeah, they’re not representing Islam. 

Jeff Johnson:
Is your family feel the same way? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. 

Jeff Johnson:
Was that a similar sentiment throughout your time? 

Malyar Meraj:
My dad, my. My older brother, my younger brother, we’re all on the same page. 

Jeff Johnson:
So it would be a little bit like your country’s being overrun from within, so to speak. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
With what’s going on with the Taliban. Okay, so tell me about. Tell me about the courage that it took for you to be in country in Afghanistan for a year and a half while you’re waiting for your siv. What does SIV stand for? Do you know? 

Malyar Meraj:
Special Immigrant Visa. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. Special Immigrant Visa. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
So when you’re waiting for your SIV for a year and a half, what kind of courage does that take? Malior. I mean, were you just. Were you tense? Were you on pins and needles the whole time? 

Malyar Meraj:
Well, it wasn’t easy, but that whole time when I was there, I stayed inside Kabul City. Never went out of there. And I know that it’s gonna happen at some point, but I was just waiting and waiting, you know, going home, work, home, work. Just waiting for the day to get out of there, you know, and be free. And then finally the day arrived. At the end of December 2017, I landed in United States and Texas. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And how. How did you find your way to Iowa from landing in Texas? How did you end up here? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, so I had a couple friends and colleagues that. They came here to Iowa. So I was in Texas for, like, a month. They were calling me. I like, this is a very good Place, you know, a lot of jobs, a lot of opportunities. And I was new in United States as well, so didn’t know much. I’m like, okay, if you guys say, I’m gonna trust you. And then I came to Iowa. It was in January. It was so cold when I came here. And when I landed here in the airport, I got out there, but I never saw the cold. And I think it was snowing as well. I like, oh, no. Where did you guys. Where did I come. It’s so cold, guys. How do you guys live here? Because I was not used to cold, but now I am. 

Malyar Meraj:
I’ve been here so many years now. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. And then I just came here, and I think the district brought me here. 

Jeff Johnson:
You can’t. Did you travel over with your wife and your kids? 

Malyar Meraj:
Just my wife back then. So when I was coming from. Oh, that’s right. 

Jeff Johnson:
You didn’t have any. 

Malyar Meraj:
I didn’t have. No, I didn’t have an. I didn’t have kids then. So all my three boys, they were born here in Iowa. 

Jeff Johnson:
But it was you and your wife, and that was the. That was what was on the siv. Is that you guys were able to travel together. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yep, it was me and my wife. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s a. That’s a courageous adventure, coming to a kind. You’d never been here before, I would imagine. 

Malyar Meraj:
No, I would. No, that was my first time, you know, because this. Almost another side of the world, you know, so many differences, you know, culture differences, you know, like, a lot of differences in. Anyway, it took us a little bit time, you know, to get to the level that. 

Jeff Johnson:
What did you. What did. You know. I’m curious what you noticed right away. And by right away, I mean, maybe it was the first month, you know, when you’re in Texas, or did you notice something about the United States? I mean, what was your first impression? 

Malyar Meraj:
So, you know, your first impression, you know, when you live in. In poor countries, you know, United States, America has a very big name, you know, like, oh, this guy is going to United States. This guy’s going to America. Like, oh, wow, he’s so lucky. You know, the first impression when you come here, when you get out of the airport, that feeling, you know, that feeling is so good, especially when you’re coming from a country like Afghanistan, that you’ve made it. 

Jeff Johnson:
That there’s. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. That you have made it. You’re finally free. You know, you’re. You can do whatever you want now. So, yeah, that feeling. It’s hard to. It’s even hard to Explain. Yeah, but it was a very good feeling. 

Jeff Johnson:
Your wife felt the same way. 

Malyar Meraj:
She felt the same way. 

Jeff Johnson:
Probably a breath of fresh air or something like that. 

Malyar Meraj:
A breath of fresh air, yeah. But it was that feeling. I still remember that feeling that night. I think it was 10 at night when I arrived. My brother was waiting for me at the airport, so. Yeah, it was. It was very nice. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. Yeah. Okay. I want to. I want to dive into. Well, before we do that, what. How have you found your footing here in the United States? Because you mentioned at the beginning that it’s a little tough living here. I can imagine that would be the case coming from what you know. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And what’s intuitive to you to come to a new country where maybe the rules are a little bit more lax? But they’re different. 

Malyar Meraj:
But they’re different. 

Jeff Johnson:
So how did. How are you making your way here in the United States? 

Malyar Meraj:
So I think if you. I think my opinion. If you’re smart. Smart enough, you know, if you go to any part of the world, it might take you a little bit, but you have to keep up with that style of living, you know? I know it took me a little bit. You know, a lot of things were new for me, so I was searching everywhere, looking at the ways, you know, the technology that we have here, you know, it’s not there. So many things. Like we use, for example, we use Uber to get rides. You know, over there, you just go out to the road. There’s so many taxis, you know, you just stop on. There’s no Uber or Lyft. This just an example, you know, stuff like that. So I. 

Malyar Meraj:
I was searching on things, you know, looking for things, going a lot of places just to get familiar with the place, with the culture and everything. But I would say it was. It was not that hard. And I was also. It didn’t take me too long, you know, to get with this. To get involved with this culture, to learn the culture and everything, so. And I kind of liked it, too, so I. 

Jeff Johnson:
You found a job? 

Malyar Meraj:
I found a job, yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Did you do that on your own or did you have. 

Malyar Meraj:
No, I didn’t. 

Jeff Johnson:
The government helping you? 

Malyar Meraj:
No, no, I did it on my own. So the government helps, too. When new immigrants come to United States, you know, the government helped them, you know, to stay, to. They pay for their rent for a couple months, you know, stuff like that. But the thing is that I went to Texas first, then I came to Iowa, So that kind of messed up my benefits, you know, my immigrant benefits. Then when I came To Iowa. So there was pretty much everything. I had to do it on my own. So I rented a house for myself, I found a job for myself, you know, and I bought a car for myself in just one year, you know, I bought a brand new car for myself. Wow. Yeah, so. But I was working pretty hard. I was working like 13 to 14 hours a day. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. Couple of jobs? No, just one job. 

Jeff Johnson:
But putting in that much time. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, putting in that much time, you know? Yeah. So that’s why. Because I had to take care of my family here, my family over there. The responsibility as well. 

Jeff Johnson:
You don’t have to name the company, but what kind of work do you do? 

Malyar Meraj:
Was production. 

Jeff Johnson:
Production work. 

Malyar Meraj:
Production work. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
So shift work. 

Malyar Meraj:
Shift work. Yeah. So our actual shift was from 6 to 6, but then I was staying for like an hour more, you know, handing over everything to the other shift. So 13, 14 hours a day. I was working. And I was there for a couple months. And when they saw my work, my manager really like it. And they. In just six months, they offered me a supervisor position when they saw how I’m doing. Good for you, by the way. Yeah, I became supervisor in just a couple of months. 

Jeff Johnson:
At a place here in Iowa where nobody’s launching missiles at you while you’re doing your work and shooting you and doing any of that kind of stuff. No threats, so that must feel good. 

Malyar Meraj:
It felt pretty good. Yeah, it felt pretty good. But then I work for a couple Years straight, like 13 hours every day. Every day, you know, taking only one day off a week. Then I burned out a little bit myself. 

Jeff Johnson:
Sure, sure. 

Malyar Meraj:
And then I slowed down. I like, okay, you gotta slow down. 

Jeff Johnson:
Right? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, you’re doing too much. But just in a couple of months, I was better again. And then I changed a couple jobs, you know, started a business. Started a couple businesses here and there. And I think it’s been going pretty good for you. 

Jeff Johnson:
Now, your wife, is she working or is she staying home with the kids? 

Malyar Meraj:
She’s working. She’s doing way more hard job than me taking care of my three kids, you know? That’s right. And they’re too much. Yeah, my kids are kind of too much. Yeah. Sometime I tell her that your job is way more harder than me. I agree with you. Because if I stay here, you know, for a couple hours at home, these. These guys are someday killing me. They never stop. They have just so much energy. 

Jeff Johnson:
Oh, well, my wife and I are. You’re making me think about a couple of weeks from now. God, Willing. My wife and I are going to become first time grandparents. Our daughter is and son in law are pregnant with their first child. So I cannot wait to have little kids running around. But I know what you’re talking about. When you got three of them that are that little, they overwhelm you. So yeah, good for you and your wife. So let me ask you a couple questions about courage, Maliar, how do you define courage? 

Malyar Meraj:
Courage is, I think courage is, I think everybody should have courage, which unfortunately they don’t. You know, like, not everybody has it. Not everybody has it, but I think they should. And I don’t know how to define that. Courage is just you just stand up for yourself in any way. 

Jeff Johnson:
I like that definition. Standing up for yourself in any way. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Did you see a lot of acts of courage with your fellow Afghanis when you were younger? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah, give me an example. 

Malyar Meraj:
I’ll give you a little example. So when I was in school, I was in 12th grade, I had a friend, he was in 10th grade. So one day I didn’t go to school, so he called me and he said that there was a bunch of guys, they came over, they throw me out of the second floor. I like, what are you talking about? There was a couple of guys, they came over and they throw me out of the second floor. Okay, you hold on, I’m coming over. So I called a couple more friends, like two, three more guys. I had like this big stick at home. So I had a 1995 Corolla. So I got that and started driving to. That was actually my dad. So at the time it was at home. So I started driving to school. 

Malyar Meraj:
So I went over there, like, what happened? Did they really throw you out of the second floor? He was like, yeah, they throw me out of the second floor. They just came over looking for me. Then they threw me out of the second floor. I was like, okay, let’s go look for the guys, let’s find them. So were going class to class. You know, schools are a little different over there. You know, were doing some crazy things there too. So were going, moving class to class, looking for the guy. But then finally we found them, found him outside of the school with like 30 more of his. He had, they had a little gang with like 30 more boys. And so when I saw him, I like, why did you do that? So there was like 30 of them and four of us. 

Malyar Meraj:
And between our friend, I was the one a little bit like I would say, with more courage. Now it’s Talking of courage, I like, why did you throw him off the second floor? He said, blah, blah. He did that. I was like, so you’re gonna throw him out of the second floor? Are you crazy? So the moment I told him, I’m like, boof. I punched him on the face. 

Jeff Johnson:
You. 

Malyar Meraj:
Know, you took this guy out? I took this guy out. You know, those other 30 person that were standing behind me, trust me, when they saw my courage, when I didn’t care about those 30 guys, I hit him, you know, right on the face, throw him on the ground. Trust me, because of my courage, those guys were just standing there and looking at me. They didn’t have. Because I think my courage was a lot more than them. 

Jeff Johnson:
Because you had to stick up for your friend. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, I stand up for him. You know, I didn’t care about all those guys that if I was scared that, oh, no, there is 30 of them. If I beat him, they’re gonna beat the shit out of me. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
But when they saw my courage, when I hit him, you know, all those 30 gu. They never had the courage to come back and return it back. 

Jeff Johnson:
So that stopped them from going on. 

Malyar Meraj:
That stopped them from. Yeah, they stopped them from coming back on me. So at the moment, you know, there was. He got back up, you know, we fought for a little bit more, and then finally all the teachers came outside, you know, and they separated us, and he went on his way, and I went on my way. Yeah. So that was a little story of courage. Like, I didn’t care about those 30 guys if I would have cared about them, you know? 

Jeff Johnson:
Is there somebody that you look up to who’s very courageous? Either a historical figure, a family member, somebody that you know, somebody in your past, somebody in your recent past? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yes, there is a guy, but unfortunately, he was killed, like, couple of months ago. So actually, my tribe is Pashtun. 

Jeff Johnson:
Pashtun. 

Malyar Meraj:
Pashtun, yeah. I’m Pashtun. And that guy was killed because he was Pashtun. I don’t know if you watch movies or not. 

Jeff Johnson:
He’s in Afghanistan. 

Malyar Meraj:
No, he was actually in Pakistan. 

Jeff Johnson:
Oh, is in Pakistan. 

Malyar Meraj:
But we have. There’s 30 million Pashtuns in Pakistan as well that they actually belongs to Afghanistan. I don’t know if you know that or not. 

Jeff Johnson:
I didn’t know that. 

Malyar Meraj:
Like. Like probably in 1936, when India and Pakistan. When India and Pakistan got separated, so there was England at the time, took over India. So when they separated. So a part of Afghanistan, they give it to Pakistan. So there was 30 million Pashtuns in Pakistan as well, that they’re actually AFGHANS. But since 1936, which is almost, probably 80, 90 years, they have been living in Pakistan, but they’re actually Afghans and they’re Pashtuns. I understand from my tribe. Yeah. So he was standing because Pakistan is doing very bad things to them, because they’re not really Pakistanis, they’re Afghans. So they stood up for their self. Like, what are you guys doing? We know we’re Afghans, but now we. But now since 80, 90 years, we belong to Pakistan. It doesn’t mean that you guys are. Do whatever you want to us. 

Malyar Meraj:
So that guy stood up for his. For his people rights, and after couple years they killed him, which was a couple months ago. And after that, the whole tribe just stood up against the Pakistan government, which has still been going on. And they’re going to decide in the next couple days what to do, that they’re going to come back to Afghanistan. Those parts that are belongs to Pakistan now, they’re going to turn it over to Afghanistan or they’re going to be separate country. They’re going to be separated from Afghanistan, separated from Pakistan. So there was that guy that he was standing for his people. Right. And he was standing. And he was a poet as well. He was reading, writing very good poets in Pashto. 

Jeff Johnson:
So that guy, he was a Pashtun poet. 

Malyar Meraj:
He was a Pashtun poet. And also. And also they call it ptm. So there’s. There’s a group of people that they’re standing for their people’s rights over there. And that guy, he was he. 

Jeff Johnson:
Incarcerated or did somebody. I mean, how did he lose his life? 

Malyar Meraj:
Pakistan, you know, Pakistan is one of the baddest government in the world too. I think, you know that probably, you. 

Jeff Johnson:
Know that I have a, there’s a friend of mine that’s involved with and actually I’m a part of it and on his board, too. A part of freeing Christians that are indigenous slavery in Pakistan. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
And we’ve been doing this for quite some time now. Freed over 6,000 of those slaves. They’re Christian slaves, though. But I’m sure that there’s some Pashtun people that are involved in that as well. I’d be interested to ask him about that, but. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. That’s somebody that absolutely represents courage to you. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, yeah. And the government killed him. And the way they killed him was. I think that was not good as well. But I look him he was a pretty courageous guy and he knew, you know, all the poets that he was writing, he knew that they’re going to kill him. So. Excuse me. So he was writing a lot of poems about his own dead because he knew the stuff that he’s doing, you know, he’s standing against one whole government, so he knew that they’re going to kill him. So a lot of poems that he was writing, it was about his death as well. So, yeah, I look him for courage. The stuff I think, you know, there was probably over to 300,000 people when they were carrying his. His body. 

Jeff Johnson:
Really? What was it? Can you say his name? 

Malyar Meraj:
His name was Pashtin. Pashtin. 

Jeff Johnson:
Pashtin, yeah. Okay, I have to look that up. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
See about him. Mayar, can you tell me and the rest of the listeners, you know, we always ask this question on this podcast and so I’m excited to ask it of you too. What’s the most courageous thing ever done? 

Malyar Meraj:
The most courageous thing that I have ever done is there was a lot of time, I think there was a lot of times that I did courageous thing. Like I knew that my life is in danger if I go to. I go to this place, but I still had to go. Like, I didn’t say no to it. Like when I said at the beginning that were doing a lot of US Military projects, building bases for them. So there was a lot of times in a lot of provinces that I knew that there is risk, you know, and I knew that there was accident happens prior to us, you know, I knew that if I go there, I might be done. You know, I might be over in a bomb blast or I might be shot or something. 

Malyar Meraj:
But I still had to do my job. So I think that takes some courage to do so for sure. Yeah. And it wasn’t only one or two times. There was like tens of times that I have done that. 

Jeff Johnson:
Molyur, I can’t imagine. Was there a specific time that you can remember, a specific instance where you were like, this one is particularly dangerous and I’m not sure if I’m coming back from this job and is it worth it? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, yeah. So once were going to a project in one of the provinces. It was kind of late evening, it was late afternoon, so there was three of us. But someone told us that it was like five hours drive. They said that you guys shouldn’t leave now because it’s in the evening time. You know, on that way, Taliban come to the road. You know, they stop cars. You know, they look for people that work for government or US military are like, no, we had to go. We had to make this thing done. So I was the one driving. I had like three more colleagues sitting with me. So were driving from on Kabul and Logar, that’s another province. So Logar is one of the dangerous provinces in Afghanistan. 

Malyar Meraj:
So I’m driving, you know, my other three colleagues, they’re just sitting like this, you know, not saying a single word. It’s like someone arms crossed, kind of. 

Jeff Johnson:
Shoulders shrunk, kind of like protecting themselves a little bit. 

Malyar Meraj:
Like it’s like seven or eight at night, you know, it’s just straight road. You wouldn’t see a single car on the road, you know, so I’m driving, I’m like, hey, guys, I was telling them, so if we see anyone, if I see anyone right in front of me, you know, I’m not gonna stop. If they try to stop us, I’m not gonna stop. I’m just gonna run over them. You know, we’re gonna escape. Even if they fire at us. You guys agree to that? Because were sure that if they stop us, if we get caught, we’re done. They’re gonna cut our heads, we’re done. I’m like, I’m gonna take this risk. Are you guys willing to take this risk with me? They’re like, yeah, whatever you say. 

Malyar Meraj:
I like, I was driving, you know, no one, I was driving probably 90, 100 miles an hour. You know, I was a little scared too, of course. 

Jeff Johnson:
Wow. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, so I was driving, but luckily that and those guys were calling us on. Wait, where are you guys at? I’m like, we’re in Lugar. Oh my God. You guys are in Lugar at this time of the night and driving on the road, I’m like, why are you guys scaring us? You know, please stop calling us. Let us to get our destination. But finally we got to the destination without any accident. 

Jeff Johnson:
And you were okay? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, and were okay. But like, stuff like, you know, there was a bomb blast happened. I was like only two or three minutes away. That happened like a lot of times. But I was never the. I think I’m too lucky. I was never injured, never in any bomb blast, or never shot. Yeah, I think. I think I was too lucky for that. 

Jeff Johnson:
Do you. Do you think the courage that you’re anybody is called to exhibit here in the United States on a day to day basis? Because I could ask anybody during any day, what’s the most courageous thing you’ve done today? You know, because it’s relative. I mean, everybody’s done something that’s courageous. Even in a day, they’ve done something. Is that courage different in the United States than it is in Afghanistan? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. Yeah. I think it’s very different. When it comes to death and life, I think the courage is different. I think when you know that your life is in danger and you’re still doing this stuff, I think that needs a different kind of courage. 

Jeff Johnson:
I have some Christian friends in Nigeria, and of course, you know, that’s a persecuted faith over there for sure. And I heard them talk at a conference one time, and they said they were encouraging people to live for their faith here in the United States, because we’re dying for our faith in Nigeria. And I would imagine it’s a little bit similar with what’s going on in Afghanistan. You know, I mean, that kind of persecution is very real and immediate. And the United States maybe not so much. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, well, there’s. Like I said, there’s. That’s one side of the world and this another side of the world. So, of course there is faith differences, culture differences, you know, so many more. So, yeah, I guess there has been. If there’s differences in everything, there should be differences in courage, too. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
Do you want to go back to. 

Malyar Meraj:
Afghanistan and to Taliban? Is there? No. 

Jeff Johnson:
If the Taliban was gone. 

Malyar Meraj:
If the Taliban is gone, you know, of course I’m gonna go to visit because I still have relatives, friends, you know, if they. If they’re gone, I’ll go to visit. And you know, another story that when Taliban was taking over, I went to visit my family. I. When Taliban took over, I just got out of there a week ago. 

Jeff Johnson:
Really? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. Yeah. I got lucky there, too. 

Jeff Johnson:
You escaped. You. You essentially escaped visit to your family. The Taliban showed up a week after you were there? 

Malyar Meraj:
A week after. 

Jeff Johnson:
Yeah. 

Malyar Meraj:
So my. I flower. So my wife’s mom, she was very sick. She knew that she’s going to pass away, so she asked me that we need to go because we think my mom is going to pass away. I want to see her before she dies. I’m like, okay, we can. We can do that. So in a couple of months, I arranged everything and went to Afghanistan and we stayed there for like two months in 20, 21. And then I was there and just. It wasn’t even a week, just five days before they took over all Afghanistan. We got out of there. We didn’t know that they were going to take over. We didn’t know that if they would have took over and we would have still there. That would have been another problem for us. But, yeah, we got lucky. 

Malyar Meraj:
We got out of there just five days before they took over again. 

Jeff Johnson:
Do you have other friends that are trying to get over here? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, I have friends. Yeah. 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s gotta be tough for you. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, it’s tough, but it is what it is. 

Jeff Johnson:
It is what it is. Malyar, you’re fascinating to me. And, you know, we’ve had guests on here before talk about how courage is contagious. And I feel like I’m a better man for getting to know you and being able to hear your stories of great courage. And I’ve got a. I’ve got a request. I got two requests. One is because we’re short on time now, can you come back and we’ll do this again, catch up with you again maybe a few months down the road and kind of check in and see how you’re doing? Okay, that’s great. And the other request is we’re so close to each other, we’re not that far away. Can’t we just be friends now for the rest of our lives? 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah, sure. 

Jeff Johnson:
Okay. 

Malyar Meraj:
You know, I really like you. When I. When I saw you the. The second time, when I saw you, we exchanged some words. We had a conversation, you know? So, yeah, I really like you when we talk there, and that’s why I’m here, you know? 

Jeff Johnson:
That’s wonderful. Well, you’re blessing me and you’re blessing our audience with your story, too, so thank you so much for being on the program today. 

Malyar Meraj:
Yeah. Thank you so much, Jeff. It’s nice to be here. 

Outro:
Thank you for joining us today on Courageous. If you’d like to hear more about the work and ministry being done at Crossroads Apologetics, please visit our home on the web at crossroadsapologetics.org Would you or someone you know like to be featured on Courageous? Send us an email at info@crossroadsapologetics.com or info@crossroadsapologetics.org telling us about the most courageous thing you’ve ever done.