Fleeting Time

Looking at this beautiful clock at the Time Museum in Tehran, I cannot believe how time flew once again. One day I was saying my goodbyes in Vienna and the other I was back in Tehran. Before Vienna I had already bid my farewells in Portugal to my family.

And now that I’m back, I find myself saying my goodbyes again, but this time to people that are leaving Iran to other destinations. It is always hard to part with people you love and that have been in your life for a while. Often I feel that the life I lead is nothing but a hello and then a big farewell.

You go to a country, you spend the next few months trying to settle down and get your bearings. Then you meet people, make friends and build connections. Soon enough though, time catches up to you and it will be time for farewells once again.

Sometimes, I wish I had a magic wand to make time stop. Stop my mother from getting more fragile each day, stop my daughter from growing up so fast, stop me and my siblings from getting older, stop my friends from leaving, stop when I see or do something amazing so that I can enjoy the moment more.

I look around, there are some people wearing costumes from another era, how fitting! Spring is here, flowers are blooming, everything looks alive.

Spring is here, flowers are blooming, everything looks alive.

Arriving at Tajrish and to my favorite bazar, there is a frenzy of activity everywhere you look. It is weekend and everyone is out shopping it seems.

The bazar is packed, I can hardly pass.

The smell of roasted corn reaches me and makes me smile. I’m back!

It is a crazy city but I do love it. I go past the shrine of Imam Zadeh. Again packed, some people praying, others taking selfies. In this bustling atmosphere, I hardly feel time passing.