Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

“On our second day, my parents announced that Kauai was boring. “There’s nothing to look at, just plants and rainbows,” my father…

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

“I always made sure to put them back in the exact order in which I had found them, for fear of losing…

— Firoozeh Dumas

“The Japanese have a saying that for every new food we try, we gain seven days of life. I may be immortal…

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

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…

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

“... even though we belong to three different religions. We are alike in so many more ways than we are different.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“At some point, someone must have yelled “Good job, Kaz!,” which my father interpreted as “You should go on television and win…

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

“only bookworms get excited over other bookworms”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“. . . to deny someone an education is not just a crime but a sin, because you are denying that person…

— Firoozeh Dumas

“Is that boy from your country?” she asked me. “Why, yes,” I wanted to tell her. “In my country, which I own,…

— Firoozeh Dumas

“I truly believe that everyone has a story and everyone's story counts.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“A couple of days of this powdered cuisine and my uncle actually lost a few pounds. Things were going well until he…

— Firoozeh Dumas

“My dad always says that kindness is our religion and if we treat everybody the way we would like to be treated,…

— Firoozeh Dumas

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

— Firoozeh Dumas

“To all the kids who don't belong, for whatever reason. This one's for you.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“I was a VIP, a Very Iranian Person, and things just take longer for us.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“Asking my father to ask the waitress the definition of “sloppy Joe” or “Tater Tots” was no problem. His translations, however, were…

— Firoozeh Dumas

“They have never heard of Lindsay Lohan. They are blessed.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“It was only when I stopped pretending to be someone else that I found my real friends.”

— Firoozeh Dumas

“My dad says the dogs and cats in America are luckier than most people in the world.”

— Firoozeh Dumas