Happy Sizdah Bedar, a Persian picnic

Sizdah Bedar is the 13th day, and the last day of Nowruz. It’s a day for family and friends to hangout.

People bring their sabzeh (sprouted wheat, barley or lentil), and leave it in nature or put it in a river at the end of their picnic. Men and women tie the grass leaf, in the hopes of findng a spouse. Others tie it to make a wish.

My family used to do a potluck, and one person always made Ash Reshteh, a hearty soup,because it was tradition. It’s made with a type of Persian noodle, lentil, chick peas, spinach and herbs, kashk – whey, fried onions and mint. It’s tasty, and most Americans like it.

  

They also ate other foods depending on who brought what to the potluck, based on the tradition when they were growing up.

Dorugheh Sizdah, the 13th Day Lie, is similar to April Fools' Day. You tell an exaggerated lie, and hope that the person you’re telling it to, has forgotten that it’s Sizedh Bedar and believes you. There are plenty of myths and stories behind this holiday, but truth be told, families just like to get together, shoot the breeze, have a relaxing day, and eat a lot of food.

 

With that, I leave you with the above Persian song titled Gentleman, by a pop singer named Sasy. This song is popular among the young American-Iranian generation. Basically, Sasy tells the woman that she is the love of his life, and the woman tells him that he is a gentleman. He tells her that he is grateful for all her gifts and phone calls, and that she’s sexy, and to shake shake her body, and to c’mon and dance.

Happy Nowruz

I am not able to celebrate Persian New Year aka Nowruz with my family this year because I'm taking care of my dad who is visiting from Iran and has the flu. But no worries.  Nowruz lasts 13 days and I have plenty of time to enjoy it. 

Persian new year reminds me of brand new clothes - velvet dress, lace pantyhose that itched my legs and shiny patent leather shoes that my mother bought me every year. It reminds me of the lovely aroma of Haycinth, the beauty of tulips, gold fish, colored eggs and yummy sweets.

There are so many traditions connected with  Nowruz that I could  easily write an entire book about it.  So, I will not try to tackle it in my blog except to say that Persian New Year has nothing to do with religion and everything to do with giving gifts to children and young adults, dancing, singing, laughing and eating with family and friends. 

So, here are some photos reminiscence of my childhood years and a brief video about this 3000-year-old celebration. Happy Nowruz to everyone.