My Fantasy

I am so excited!  My beautiful little girl is graduating from college this month! I am so proud of Shahdi and all her accomplishments over the years. As her name implies, she has truly been such a joy to be around and has been such a unique and positive force in our lives.

We will be attending her graduation from Brown University on May 29^th.  I remember when she was selecting the college to attend back in 2011. It was a simple choice for her because she wanted to be near her brother. Since Arman had gone to RISD in Providence and was living there, Shahdi had decided to apply to Brown University as an English major.  Except for the first year when she wanted to experience the dorm life, she lived the next three years with Arman and his roommates at an off-campus apartment. I am very pleased as a mother to observe the close bond between my children and the way they love each other. I hope their loving relationship lasts throughout their lifetime. I am so glad that my children had the opportunity to live together and continue growing together in the last four years while Shahdi was in college, just as my elder brother, Babak, and I did during our college years at Iowa State University and University of Michigan.

I will be one proud mother watching my beautiful smart daughter walk up the stage at Brown’s commencement ceremony. I am so elated that I can hardly keep my excitement in check. I am so glad that Shahdi will still be close to Arman in the next three years while she is attending Columbia University’s Law School. She may yet decide to look for an apartment near Arman than a place near Columbia. Either way her brother will not be far away, and that gives me peace of mind.

Ever since Shahdi joined the LSW’s debate team, we knew she would someday make a great lawyer. At first she was against pursuing law simply because she thought lawyers were generally angry most of the time, but once she started her college career, her perception of lawyers and her attitude towards law changed and she realized it would be a good fit for her. Of course, she most likely will never strive to be a rich criminal defense lawyer because her heart is in becoming a human rights lawyer in order to help the underprivileged and the oppressed.  I am certain she will be a passionate and hard-working attorney. As early as her freshman year in high school, both Mehrdad and I had observed her exceptional skills, logic and wit during her debate tournaments, and we both had independently reached the conclusion that law would be a good fit for Shahdi’s talents, passion and personality. We are just so happy that she eventually arrived at the same conclusion and decided to pursue law.

If Hillary Clinton doesn’t become the first female president of the United States this year, I hope someday Shahdi will.  She will be an exceptional president, and I hope to live long enough to see the day she will occupy the Oval Office. Of course, I am letting my dreams get the better of me and she may not be interested in getting involved in politics but mothers can dream, right?!  Knowing Shahdi, I don’t think she would like running for the presidency because she would rather spend her time helping others and seeing real and tangible improvement in people’s lives.

We are so fortunate that my parents, brothers and two of her other uncles will be present at her graduation ceremony. It would be the first time that all of us have gotten together for such an event.  After the ceremony, we will help Shahdi move her belongings to Arman’s apartment. She will then take off for a month-long backpacking trip to Europe with Neeka and a couple of other close friends. She is planning on visiting some of our family and friends along the way, in addition to places she has never been to before. I am sure the young ladies will have a lot of fun and this will be a memorable adventure for them all. Afterwards, she will return to Lincoln for a month to unwind, relax and visit with her old friends before leaving for New York in early August. The next few months will certainly be very busy for Shahdi.

We wish her all the luck and success in the world in her future endeavors. I can’t wait to see how the next chapters of her life unfold. We are looking forward to many more accomplishments in her academic, professional, and personal life.

Our little girl is all grown up and we could not be more ecstatic. We hope she will remain healthy and happy throughout her life and will be able to reach all of her dreams.

Our love for her has no bounds and we are looking forward to her bright future and many more years of happy events and successes.