Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 228

“I like to sit alone and think about the world. I wanted to be...

“I like to sit alone and think about the world. I wanted to be a philosophy major, but there is no philosophy class at our universities. The only class offered is ‘Religion and Philosophy.’ We aren’t exactly encouraged to decide things for ourselves. Any philosophy we have must be built on the existence of God. So I switched my major to physics. It still allows me to think about the world. And if someone wants me to say that a thing is true, they need to prove it with a formula.“

(Tehran, Iran)

“I work on a ship so I’m gone for six months at a time. By the...

“I work on a ship so I’m gone for six months at a time. By the middle of the journey, I’ve adjusted to being away from home. The first few days and the last few days are the hardest to get through.”

(Namakabroud, Iran)

“My wife has a brain tumor and I haven’t sold a suit in two...

“My wife has a brain tumor and I haven’t sold a suit in two weeks. I was with my grandson last week and he asked me to buy him a chocolate. But I had nothing in my pockets. I had to tell him: ‘Wait until your father comes home.’ I wanted to melt into the soil.”

(Tehran, Iran)

“Since he was very young, I’ve tried to show him that we can’t...

“Since he was very young, I’ve tried to show him that we can’t always afford the things that we want. When my wallet is full, I show him. When my wallet is empty, I show him. Things have been especially hard lately because my husband has missed a few paychecks. We couldn’t get new supplies for school this year. But he told me: ‘Don’t worry Mom, we’ll get them when the wallet is full.’ And then the other day he saw that I was upset because we couldn’t get all the groceries we needed. So he went into his room and brought me his own savings.”

(Anzali, Iran)

“We’re fighting her lung cancer right now. She’s lost so much...

“We’re fighting her lung cancer right now. She’s lost so much weight. We just moved to the sea so the air would be better. We had a close call the other night. I sleep in a different room because I don’t want to wake her with my snoring. But I woke up in the middle of the night and I could feel that something was wrong. I saw her shadow on the wall. I ran out to meet her in the hall, and she was gasping for her last breath. I had to give her an injection in the chest. If I hadn’t seen her shadow, we’d have lost her. Three years ago, the doctors told us that she only had six months. But God has given us three years. We take walks. We play backgammon. We look at photos of the grandchildren. I’m trying to cherish every moment.”

(Namakabroud, Iran)

“I left Iran eighteen years ago and went to Britain. I felt...

“I left Iran eighteen years ago and went to Britain. I felt that I had to leave because the war had just ended and there weren’t many jobs. But I didn’t speak English, and I hadn’t gone to college, so I wasn’t sure how I’d survive. When I arrived in Britain, I found a small apartment to share with two African immigrants. We couldn’t communicate with each other. I tried turning on the television but I couldn’t understand anything. I totally lost my confidence. Luckily I met another Iranian immigrant who offered me a job at his fish-n-chips shop. My job was to mop the floor and peel potatoes. It was very difficult to adjust. I felt very lonely. I’d been a wrestler back in my hometown. People had respected me. Now I was at the bottom. Years later, I’d own several of my own restaurants. But that first night I cried the entire walk home.”

(Namakabroud, Iran)

“It’s taken a lot of time to fit together like...

“It’s taken a lot of time to fit together like this.”

(Namakabroud, Iran)

“I’m supposed to watch them while Mom takes a nap....

“I’m supposed to watch them while Mom takes a nap. If they’re too close to each other, they fight. If they’re too far away from each other, they cry.”

(Anzali, Iran)

“I’m bored with my life. Last year my wife passed away. ...

“I’m bored with my life. Last year my wife passed away. I used to leave work as early as possible so we could have dinner together. Now I go home as late as I possibly can.”

(Chalus, Iran)

“My dad taught me how to swim!”“How do you...

“My dad taught me how to swim!”
“How do you swim?”
“First put on your life jacket and then hold on to the raft.”

(Anzali, Iran)