A child, again

8220;I8217;m happy to be going back to school,8221; she said. 8220;I8217;m going to study Arabic, the Quran, mathematics and drawing.8221;

Nujood8217;s unusual story of rebellion made her an international media celebrity. 8220;When I left school, I learned how to count from one to 100. Now, I am going to learn how to count until a million,8221; she said.

The girl8217;s experience, and her ambition, have served as an inspiration to her parents, uneducated rural people who say they married her off to protect her from the dangers of the city.

Only about half of Yemeni girls attend primary school. Last year, a 13-year-old in Nujood8217;s school of 1,200 girls dropped out to marry. 8220;Now, she8217;s a mother,8221; Matri said.

Women8217;s rights activists say childhood marriage is part of a vicious circle. Girls bear too many children, contributing to Yemen8217;s exploding birth rate and high illiteracy among women.

In Nujood8217;s class, the teacher began the day8217;s lesson by asking them to recite the national anthem as well as Quranic passages. 8220;Who can recite the surat al-hamed?8221; the teacher asked, referring to the first verse of the Quran. She noticed Nujood8217;s hand. 8220;Nujood?8221; she said.

She stood up, and began: 8220;Show us the straight path, the path of those whom you have favored,8221; she said.

8220;Let8217;s give her a round of applause,8221; said the teacher.

The others clapped as Nujood sat down, a little girl once again.