For everyone who knows or doesn't know, Mehdi Mahdavikia has been my favorite Iranian soccer player for many many years. I am proud of his

Here I am, sitting here, dressed head to toe in the freedom of expression, blue mascara on my face, and I am lost. Today began

8 a.m. back of the bookstacks it's where our friendship grew waiting for my ex-karate teacher to stroll in with his gymbag that never held

He drank the sweet elixir of martyrdom 22 years ago, and he died. He tied a grenade around his waist 22 years ago, and he

I lie in this cold, plastic chair, and look up at the drab ceiling, bored out of my mind. Light, classical music plays in the

Freedom. Human Rights. Equality. Meritocracy. Respect. Democracy. Tolerance. Civility. On July Fourth, as we Iranians in the San Francisco Bay Area gather together for weekend

Almost twenty and yet she had never felt the pressure of someone else's lips flutter against her own. When she was little, she would lie

We spent the summer I turned eighteen in Iran. Stepping inside the sliding glass doorways of the house which had been my grandfather's wedding gift

The tear drops fall down along the collar of my sweater as I wipe away at them with a free hand and raise the stereo

Teens on the verge of adulthood, adults clinging to the last years of innocence. The generation before mine, that of my parents, was multi-faceted, controversial,

I always catch him when he is at his worst. The tiny bead of sweat rolling off his brow takes its time, gently traveling along

The restaurant's patio is nearly empty. An old couple sit shivering beneath a heater. They are the last of the early-dinner diners. When they finish

So I was an Iranian, a kid born to parents in America who themselves had been born in Iran. So I walked around humming Dariush

Lost child, blinks blue eyes, hot tear flows, as billion dollar bombs engulf ten cent shacks in flames and the once-glittery dreams of honorable men

Covered and smothered by heavy, wet blankets. It's dirty laundry. The sock without a pair. My lucky red ones. Bad luck. Lots of blinding white

It is a strange and daunting task, preparing yourself for a loved one's death. Not death, I was wrong to use that term. I promised

When good things come along, we never have the ability to cherish them, to appreciate them. Maybe it's part of human nature. Our one fatal

For weeks now, I have been catching him do this, almost in a carefully planned manner. He walks through the door, down the hall, his

Every once in a while time stand still and the people of the world can do nothing but sit and watch, open-mouthed, their hearts beating

I was born an American. I have one of those shiny little blue passports with the gold writing that some illegal immigrants would kill or

It struck me as I was reading ” Kotlet?” and taking a long-awaited trip down memory lane that not too many Iranians who have been

One of the most defining moments in a teenager's life is when her father tells her, “Honey, I think I found the car for you!”

I saw a movie the other day called Pay It Forward, and I laughed, and I cried, and I smiled. For the first time in

Waking up from a deeply troubled sleep, my legs still entangled with the sky blue blanket. It's the same blanket that my parents wrapped around