5岁惨遭割礼，25岁成世界超模。非洲版“乘风破浪的姐姐”令世界泪目
When she was five, she herself suffered circumcision. At the age of thirteen, she fled through the desert to Mogadishu in order to escape an arranged marriage to a 60-year-old man.
5岁时（电影《沙漠之花》中是3岁），华莉丝接受了“割礼”；13岁时，为逃避家里安排的与一位60岁老年男子的婚姻，她穿越沙漠逃到了首都摩加迪休（去投奔她的姥姥）。
小C科普：
“割礼”是非洲一种非常残忍的习俗，一般在女孩4-8岁之间进行。具体操作是用刀片等利器将生殖器一部分切除，再缝合，只留下一个很小的开口来排泄尿液与经血。其目的是：确保女性在结婚前是处女之身。
重点是：全程无麻醉！几乎无消毒！
Later, one of her uncles, who was then Somali ambassador to the United Kingdom, was looking for a maid. So she was brought to London.
后来，她的一位任职索马里驻英国大使的姨父，正好需要一名女佣，华莉丝便被带到了伦敦。
小C说：
家里有这么高级别的亲戚，都没能让她免受割礼之苦，可想而知，那些普通人更是无法指望任何救星。
At the age of 18 the life of Waris changed abruptly. She was discovered by chance as a model by the English photographer Terence Donovan. Waris achieved international fame overnight and became one of the first supermodels.
18岁时，华莉丝的人生突然被改变。一个偶然的机会，她被英国摄影师特伦斯·多诺万（戴安娜王妃御用摄影师）发掘，成为一名模特。华莉丝一夜成名，在国际上走红，成为一名顶级超模。
电影《沙漠之花》剧照
She also appeared in fashion magazines such as Elle, Glamour and Vogue. This was followed in 1995 by a BBC documentary entitled “A Nomad in New York” about her modeling career.
她还经常登上时尚杂志，比如《ELLE》，《Glamour》和《Vogue》。1995年英国广播公司（BBC）拍摄了一部展现她模特生涯的纪录片《游牧人在纽约》。
In 1998, her first book “Desert Flower” appeared. It is an autobiography that went on to become an international bestseller.
1998年，她的处女作《沙漠之花》出版，这本自传迅速成为国际畅销书。
In 2009, Desert Flower, a feature-length film based on this book was released, with the Ethiopian supermodel Liya Kebede playing her.
2009年，根据此书改编的长片《沙漠之花》上映，埃塞俄比亚超模Liya Kebede饰演华莉丝。
7分钟看完电影《沙漠之花》