Diaspora

Another Mother's Child

On March 27, 2009, another little girl disappeared, this time closer to home for me. Eight year old Sandra Cantu was reported missing from the Tracy mobile home park where she lived with her mother. Her face was immediately on the nightly news, her rounded cheeks and innocent smile engulfed my thoughts those first few nights. I found myself thinking of her as I drove the highway, searching for her face to call out to me in the back of every white passenger van being driven by a menacing old man. I found myself looking out the window more at work, focusing intently on the faces of little girls walking past even though before I would barely have paid attention to passerby; I was just hoping to find her>>>

Opinion on Everything!

Have you ever wondered what it is that compels people to give an opinion on topics that they have virtually no experience or knowledge of? I am not talking about political or social topics that are common and many of us have an opinion on, rather, topics that are more fact-based or scientific in nature where some expertise is required. I am sure you have faced many such people. At a recent gathering with friends, there was this middle-aged woman who was giving medical advice on all kinds of illnesses. Among other things, she was claiming that a certain kind of stone attached to the body will prevent a heart attack or stroke and also cure many diseases>>>

Breakfast at Gracie Mansion

Monday morning I had the great honor of meeting personally with New York City Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, on the occasion of the old and traditional Norooz celebration at his official residence at Gracie Mansion. I had met him before; however, this morning was a turning point in my judgment of him as he proved to be a practical and a no non-sense human being, not just a politician. Himself a descendant of an immigrant family, he demonstrated many understandings the communities are going through now. But first, allow me to convey to you his message of great contribution of immigrants, including Iranians, to the New York City community>>>

Four more weeks

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Way to Beg, lady

There is this lady who begs almost everyday near my workplace. I first noticed her more than couple years ago. What made her stand out from all the other beggars is how she went about asking for money. She said something to the effect that whether people wanted to help her with her goal of making some amount of dollars. I forgot the number of dollars she mentioned but what was interesting to me was how she talked about her goal and somehow made her begging a little bit higher class than all the others. She had a goal and was working towards it and here was passersby’ chance to help her achieve her goal>>>

Culprit by Default

Working in a restaurant when I was a student in the early 1970s wasn’t officially authorized under my student visa, but it provided me with a badly needed income. Earning a salary by the hour was something unheard of for me since there was no payment system like that back home in Iran. Even though the minimum wage rate in those days was not all that high in nominal terms, it was a considerable amount of money for me since I use to live on a very small stipend. In addition to its monetary reward, the job had non-monetary benefits. I was able to take home the restaurant’s unsold leftover baked potatoes every night because I believe that health department regulations did not allow the potatoes to be saved>>>

Marla and Me

One night after work around 3.30 in the morning I just missed talking to her so much, when I got home, I called and left her a message “Marla, I miss you and Doug so much, I miss our Thursday-night dinners in your garden, I miss our deep conversations, I miss helping you trim those beautiful Roses. I realized that I never told you how much I love you and how valuable you have been in my life. I just want to tell you that I appreciate your being in my life, I appreciate all you have done for me, I should have said it every time we talked but I didn’t know then that friends like you are rare to find. Thanks for being there for me all those lonely years.”>>>

I’m Wrong, You’re Right, Alright?

Over 30 years ago in Tehran, I worked with an American who was a native of Virginia and had spent most of his life in the Middle East working on engineering projects. He had lived and worked in such countries as Iran, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and many Persian Gulf States. We used to discuss many topics from life in America to historical sites in Iran, and of course politics. He showed a great deal of interest in Iran and the people of Middle East. I asked him after spending so many years in Iran and the region, what he thought was the biggest problem facing the people? His answer amazed me to this date>>>

Askident!

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In long-term interests of peace

President Obama has promised to restore the United States' moral authority in the world. In order to do so, the new administration should revise U.S. foreign policy that has proved a political failure and undermined respect for international human rights. Topping the list is the U.S. policy of regime-change toward Iran. The policy has failed to bring any tangible changes in the Iranian regime's behavior. Instead, the policy has harmed the Iranian people's demands for the rule of law and respect for human rights. Since December, Shirin Ebadi, the only Muslim woman ever to receive a Nobel Peace Prize, has been suffering at the hands of radical Islamists>>>