When people go to a new country, whether as refugees or immigrants, kids usually assimilate easily, but it's much harder for the grownups. Especially….

My father's motto has always been 'Room in the heart, room in the house.' As charming as this sounds, it translates into a long line for the bathroom….

Ever since we had arrived in the United States, my classmates kept asking me about magic carpets. - They don't exist-I always said. I was wrong. Magi….

Most fruits, if left alone on a tree, eventually do ripen, especially if they're not being yelled at..

My parents are highly evolved worriers. ... If worrying were an Olympic sport, my parents' faces would have graced the Wheaties box a long time ago..

In America, Christmas is the king of all holidays. To be left out of Christmas is the ultimate minority experience..

Without my relatives, I am but a thread; together, we form a colorful and elaborate Persian carpet..

Marriage, in my culture, has nothing to do with romance. It's a matter of logic. If Mr. and Mrs. Ahmadi like Mr. and Mrs. Nejari, then their children….

People don't realize that when Iranians marched against the shah, their goal was not to have a religious government take over. Everybody marched agai….

Everyone except gamblers knows that gambling never pays. ... Losing, like winning, only increased his determination to play..

Elinor Lipman is to tweets what Shakespeare is to sonnets..

Older boys often asked me to teach them “some bad words in your language”. At first I politely refused. My refusal merely increased their determinati….

It's not what we eat or don't eat that makes us good people; it's how we treat one another. As you grow older, you'll find that people of every relig….

Writing is such a powerful tool. I believe everyone should be writing..

For me, writing clarifies things. It gives meaning, and it makes me see the connections..