Happy Norooz! Norooz is the Iranian New Year which begins on the first day of Spring. It is a celebration that last a couple weeks long and is fully of spending time with family, ridding life of negativity, and amazing food. Since I’m away at college I don’t get to celebrate all of it, but it consists of 2 big events at the start and end of the New Year. The first one is Chaharshanbe Soori which is the last Tuesday of the Iranian calendar year. It is a huge party in big cities where you get to see your friends and spend time with family. In San Diego, it’s a huge dance party in Point Loma, where people dance, socialize, and eat food. But the main thing that happens is that everyone jumps over a fire and says a chant to rid their lives of negativity and bad energy. Don’t worry it’s not a huge fire, and if you feel uncomfortable jumping over it then you can jump next to it.
Then during the two weeks, you go see family and spend time with them, and the children get eidi, which is essentially cash. People also set up a table with 7 elements that start with the letter “S”, in Farsi, the language spoken by Iranians. And people will even compete to see who can make the prettiest ones. The last event is Sizda Bedar and it’s another huge party/ festival in Point Loma, in San Diego, which is also full of dancing and eating. These are events that bring the Iranian community together. I am so beyond grateful I grew up in a city where there was an Iranian community and I was able to embrace my culture and celebrate it. Despite it seeming like all we do during this time is eat, dance, and spend time with family, there is a lot under the surface. It is a time of reflection on the past year. They say that whatever you’re doing the time of “Sal Tahveel,” which is the time it becomes the New Year, is what you will be doing for the rest of the year.
This is absolutely my favorite time of the year. Especially, because I get to see my friends I usually am not able to. To all my Iranian friends and family, I hope you had an amazing Norooz and a great year ahead of you. To all my non-Iranian friends reading this, thank you for taking the time to learn more. Here are some pictures of food and desserts we eat:
*Photos by myself.