Diaspora

Salaaam Iran

My road to Iran began with the flames of September 11 and led me two years later to Forough's poem on light. And so it has been a road suffused in light, albeit two different kinds of light. The history of Iran has been suffused in light but it has also been veiled in darkness. I am an Eastern European Jew so I know well the ways of both darkness and light, and still I believe that Light will find the way >>>

Allied inavsion of Iran

As an Iranian, I can't wonder if we are headed towards similar events that took place when allies invaded Italy in 1943, after the country was already invaded by the Nazis? But before I get to that I want to write a paragraph about "Fools". The most dominant characteristic of fools is that they never fail to behave like fools. The fools in charge of Iran are no exception>>>

Iran beyond Iranians

Architecture is the art of living which is documented sometimes in the heart of a rock or it is molded as a mud brick or raised in the shape of a dome. Studying the architecture of a nation gives one insights on its peopleís personality and their characteristics. Iranian architecture is humble, pragmatic, and progressive as much of its creators the Iranians. I am not talking about the bad copies of Frank Lloyd Wright, Philip Johnson, or Le Corbusierís master pieces in northern Tehran. I am talking about the architecture of the old fabric of Yazd, Isfahan, Shiraz, Boushehr, Kerman, Mahan, Semnan, Kashan, Zanjan, Tabriz, and so on>>>

The nature of freedom

Recently Dr. Parvin sent me a copy of his just-published novel, Alethophobia. Before reading it, I always assumed that the ultimate sanctuary of truth is the world of academia. Apparently this is not always so. The main character in Alethophobia, Professor Pirooz, tells how the fear of truth (alethophobia) affected the lives of a nexus of students, faculty and administrators on the seemingly serene campus of a midwestern university in the 1980’s, and how it threatened to compromise academic freedom as well as his own career. I offered to interview Dr. Parvin about the book, and he agreed. Since we have not yet met in person, this conversation was carried out via phone and email

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What happened?

There are millions of Iranians, inside and outside of Iran, who are still trying to make sense of what happened to them and their country almost 30 years ago. Some blame it on the British, some on the Americans and some on location of Iran being the crossroads between East and West and therefore more at risk of being the victim of the whims of external forces and their interests. There are also those who have a fatalistic view of this all being the will of Allah and it all becoming very clear soon, an “Aha!” moment in the future.>>>

نهار روز " شکر گزاری"

"به به سلام، چه عجب از این طرفها آقا! خیلی خوش آمدین. مگه اینکه دیگرون دست شمارو بزور بکشند و بیارنتون اینجا، خودتون که اصلاً یادی هم از ما نمیکنین! نه باکفش بفرمائین، تورو خدا در نیارین، صفا اوردین، بفرمائید بریم تو ایوون همه اونجان، بفرمائین." و ماهم با عرض ادب، خضوع و خشوع معمول و چاق سلامتی با شیرین خانم و شوهرشان ایرج خان و چند تن دیگر از میهمانان ایشان که مثل بنده و دوستم مسعود قدری زودتر رسیده بودند دست دادیم و وارد منزل زیبای ایشان که در منطقه با صفائی بنام "پاسیفیک پلی صید" مجاور تپه های سر سبز "سانتا مونیکا" قرار گرفته است شدیم.>>>

Gift of love

It was autumn of 1998 when Rumi and I became friends. I was in my first semester of junior year in college; bubbling with excitement and preparations for the following semester which I would spend in Sevilla, Spain. During Thanksgiving break at home, I received a couple of gifts from my brother who had just returned from a business conference in Minneapolis. As the baby of the family, I was accustomed to this. What I did not expect however, was to receive a gift from his friend and co-worker Don, who had also traveled with him. I opened Don’s package to find a small book with a red cover containing 2 CD inserts. The word ‘Eshgh’ (love) was written on the cover weaved-in with its English title, “A Gift of Love Deepak and Friends Present Music Inspired by the Love Poems of Rumi”>>>

My first few days

November 24, 1978, yes long time ago. The Iran Air flight landed in New York's JFK, late, as usual, I'm sure, and I arrived into US. After getting my one suitcase I walked outside the double doors, right outside of Iran Air terminal. I was wearing my new leather jacket my friend had gotten me before I left Iran. It was barely warm enough for a late November night in the cold New York air. I put my hands in my pockets and took couple of deep breaths. It was cold and crisp. Less than 24 hours earlier I had left Iran. My older sister's help me pack that one suitcase with couple of suits, socks, few shirts, and some personal items. No razor, I wasn't old enough, I was only 17>>>

East-West bridge

I love the U.S. with its many opportunities and the can-do, pioneering and optimistic attitude to life and remain a staunch advocate for the integration of many of the good aspects of western culture with selective reformed aspects of Eastern, particularly the Iranian culture. American culture nurtures individual rights and freedoms of choice, aspiration to excellence and industry, and predictability in one’s life. In comparison, Iranian culture is family-centered, enhances one’s state of mind and spirit with its long history, esthetic literature, and a sense of belonging to one of the oldest and richest civilizations>>>

Let's talk Turkey

I must admit, i am not a huge fan of all things turkey, to be honest. I don’t mind it, but the American obsession with turkey on rye, turkey pot pie, turkey sausages and turkey bacon, is just one step beyond insanity for my purist ways. Furthermore (I believe) sausages and bacon should be made of pork! If our little porky pals weren’t so damn tasty, then why would we try and make alternatives to these products, at every opportunity? I know, I know it’s a health thing, and of course, there are two sides to every argument. For the “My-body- is- a- temple” types amongst you, I will gladly point out that turkey is one of the lowest fat meats around>>>

Something better to do

For those of you who don't know what Ghorme Sabzi is, it's a popular Iranian stew made of beans, chopped vegetables, dried lime and minced meat cooked in a certain order, mixed together and cooked again to be served with white rice. You may ask what does this stew have to do with bombing Iran other that the fact that eating too much of it feels like being bombed from the inside? A few years ago a friend in England sent me an email expressing his concern about the possibility of a preemptive American attack against Iran and thought this would be a disaster for both countries>>>