Feast upon Feast: A 30 Year Reunion

After nearly 30 years, my father was reunited with Parichehr Qardashem, a distant relative with whom he attended Baha'i Sunday school for 12 years during childhood. Parichehr is also significant to Shahrzad and I, since she was, in a convoluted way, our matchmaker. She also knows the Saririans since their brief time in Portugal. We were guests at Parichehr's home in Oakton, Virginia, and we were delighted to see the famed artist and vocalist Rashid Mostaghim and his family amongst the guests.

We had an afternoon filled with poetry, heavenly music, and reminiscence of many memories. Mr. Mostaghim opened with a very symbolic ghazal by Khazen Bakhtiari. He then offered his rendition of The Gardener, or باغبان, which he had composed many decades ago.

The day coincided with the anniversary of the Declaration of the Bab, and, as such, it was a feast upon feast. You may find a few pictures of that memorable day below.

Happy Birthday!

To my beloved Shahrzad,

May your birthday be blessed with many joyous moments,
May you live a long and prosperous life,
May you celebrate every birthday alongside your loved ones,
May the Blessed Beauty accompany your every step,
May you succeed in every path you undertake,
May you always have the blessings of your beloved parents shower upon you.
And,
Many you never forget that I love you from the bottom of my heart.

Lovingly,

Nizam

Hats off to the Newest Dr. Missaghi!

After many years of painstaking work, Shahrzad Missaghi, has made history once again. Shahrzad, the holder of the highest grade point average from the Baha'i Institute for Higher Education, and the first graduate of that institution to be directly admitted into a doctoral program with her bachelor degree, has just graduated from Temple University's school of pharmacy with a Doctor of Philosophy in pharmaceutical sciences. I believe that she is the first of the BIHE graduates to obtain a Ph.D., although many of her colleagues are well on their way to earn their respective degrees. She was featured on page 4 in Temple Times, the university publication that high-lighted only a few graduates with extraordinary stories:

http://www.temple.edu/temple_times/5-18-06/5-18-06.pdf

We all had a wonderful time at Shahrzad's graduation and wish her the best as she embarks on a new chapter of her life as a doctor. It was a time of rejoicing and cheering as she was hooded by one of the deans at the school of pharmacy. We remembered the late professor Parviz Javid in particular who was instrumental in the development of the school of pharmacy at BIHE and a constant inspiration for the students and alumni alike. Our special gratitude also goes to Babak, without whose continued encouragement and help this undertaking would not have been possible,

A Letter to Our Mothers on Mother's Day

Dear Tahereh and Nahid,

We would like to thank you for the nurturing, love, and compassion with
which you have sealed our lives. You have taught us resilience,
diligence, and patience. You have given us all that we are and all
that we will ever be. Our beloved Tahereh and Nahid! We are eternally
indebted to you both for your loving kindness, generosity, sacrifice,
and gentle spirit. We both miss dearly the times when you would tuck
us in at night time, and when you would awaken us at dawn with your
gentle touch. May the Blessed Beauty confirm you in every step you
take.

Happy Mother's Day,

Shahrzad and Nizam

A Whirlwind Visit to the Valley of the Sun

Aptly known as the Valley of the Sun, Phoenix has grown go a metropolis of 3.7 million people. The greater Phoenix surpassed Philadelphia in population in mid 2005 to became the fifth largest city in the United States. A Cambridge educated Englishman named Phillip Darrell Duppa (1832-1892) named the city after the legendary bird, memorializing the birth of a new civilization from the ruins left by the Hohokam, the native Americans who once inhabited this land. These ancient peoples had set a foundation for the resurrection of the city "from the ashes" of the ancient location.

We managed to find and place an offer on a house during this visit with a closing date of June 26, 2006. We stayed at Mehrdad and Baharak's place and enjoyed their hospitality. Below, you may find a couple of pictures from this trip. In the pictures, you may recognize Baharak Norouziani (who made a guest appearance) and her husband of one year, Shahriar Foroughi.

Hold Thou my Hand...

This is a profound song by Faramarz Aslani. I have provided a rough translation.

Hold my hand,
Hold thou my hand,
Receive my beseeching hand,
Heal me, prior to my death!

Sing, fly,
Share my pain, my secrets,
Be a beginning,
That has no end!

Be a flower, perhaps a rose-garden,
Be a lover, a consumed lover,
Be the lush green,
To my old and dry season

Your fragrance, your shirt,
Fused my soul with your temple,
Embrace me,
So that I take on your scent

Be a smile for my days and nights,
for my lips are broken with tears,
Be the rain,
For my arid temple.

Be a song,
Fill this house,
Be an echo of the past,
For there is no tune left, in this imprisoned, hollow reed.


دستم بگير
دستم را تو بگير
التماس دستم را بپذير
درماني باش پيش ازآني كه بميرم

آوازي باش پرواز اگر نه اي
همدردي باش همراز اگر نه اي
آغازي باش تاپايان نپذيرم

گلداني باش گلزار اگر نه اي
دلبندي باش دلدار اگر نه اي
سبزينه باش با فصل بد و پيرم

ازبوي تو چون پيراهن تو ،
آغشته شد جانم با تن تو
آغوشي باش تابوي تو بگيرم

لبخندي باش درروز وشب من
درهم شكست ازگريه لب من
باراني باش براين تشنه كويرم

آهنگي باش دراين خانه بپيچ
پژواكي باش ازبگذشته كه هيچ ،
آهنگي نيست درنايي كه اسيرم

San Francisco, the City of Wind and Fog!

Apparently Chicago got a bad rep for being the windy city. However, during this visit, we found San Francisco to be quite windy, foggy, and cold. Outside of the weather, we loved our stay as Shahrzad attended the conference for Society of Teachers in Family Medicine. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency hotel and our room overlooked the San Francisco Bay and the Bay Bridge. We got to catch up with my uncle, his wife Stephanie, and many friends, including Arash and Tinoosh Massoudieh, Arash Eslami, Smita Teotia, Jeremiah Jeffries, Shamim Pakzad, Mitra Niaj, and her son Lawrence. We got a taste of Persian food at Albroz Persian cuisine in Berkeley and also at Maykadeh in downtown. We got a taste of wonderful steak and seafood at Buckeye's, a restaurant in Sausalito.

We also got to watch the new Persian comedy at Oaks Theatre in Berkeley named Maxx. We highly recommend it for a good laugh!

San francisco is a wonderful place. Just remember, if you plan on visiting, to take a jacket with you!