Success
I took every chance I got
by Mohammad Nazir Momand
Jawad Taherpor is 32 years old and was born in the region of Herat in Afghanistan. He is the author of the book “You can’t hold me down”. Eight years ago, he came to Germany as a refugee. In a short time, he was able to learn German up to a very high level, so that he was able to enrol in a university very soon. He took advantage of the opportunities he had in the best way possible and built himself an existence while attending university. This young and successful young man is currently living in the city of Frankfurt, where he is working as an “IT Officer” at a partner company of Microsoft. Jawad started to learn English in 2001 and subsequently worked as a translator and cultural consultant for the American forces stationed in Herat and Helmand. He spent more than a decade of his life working in translation at the American Camp “Leatherneck”. But his life quickly came to change very profoundly.
He decided to flee Afghanistan. The constant threats caused his family to convince him to leave and thus save his life. Although he had never planned to come to Germany, he took upon himself a rough and dangerous journey. Originally, he had applied for a Green Card in America, but is had not been issued in time and thus he had to leave for Germany in an unforeseen fashion. The experiences he made during this journey only made him stronger, so that he now can face his problems better than before. In Germany, he started to write. After writing for roughly four months, his book was completed. The book is concerned with his personal life story, the things he accomplished, his optimism and a plan for a better tomorrow.
His American colleagues aided him with the publishing of his book. Anyone deciding to read it, will surely strive forwards a better future, lean to love his own life, and start to make plans for their future. His book is available for people young and old in bookstores around Europe and Asia. Jawad has overcome many difficulties and experienced a lot. Today, he advises people to love life, take advantage of all their opportunities, to have hope for the future and, finally, to never give up. Shortly after Jawad came to Germany, he met an Iranian girl and they married. Today, they have already a child. Roughly six months ago, Jawad finally received his Green Card and prepared to travel to the US to spend his holidays there.
