Sharif Milan: "I wish I did, though. Own some land, that is. My family owned it once when I was a young man. It's all gone now." Sharif Milan's eyes had a faraway look in them, as if he could still see the land. Avi: "Where did it go?" Sharif Milan: "We lost it during Partition. My family owned many farms in Punjab---the one in Pakistan." Avi: "But land does not go anywhere, does it?" Sharif Milan: "You are right. Land does not. It's not the people who go away. I know where my land is in Punjab. I can see it. Furthermore, I can walk on it. But it is not mine. Isn't that terrible? I can never forget the day when those land grabbers held my family at gunpoint and told me to leave. I didn't think I would have to leave the country.

A Darker Dawn