Everything Sad Is Untrue (a true story)

by Daniel Nayeri

But the trick is that in America, nobody wants to answer questions. When Mrs. Martz has a math issue, even if they know the answer, it’s bad to answer. That’s a nerd thing to do. Also, it’s “try-hard,” which is a thing that you are when you race to finish tests before everyone else. I’m not a try-hard anymore, but I answer all the questions and then smile at a Jared or a Jennifer, who is slumping in their seat like, “Don’t worry, Pal, I got this one.”

That’s how to be “in on it.” Perform a service and say it’s no big deal. Then people can see how chill you are. You can even answer to get the teacher to move on, and then ...

Being generous to a guest is one of the most different things about these countries.

In Iran, when a guest comes, you tell them they may be angels, they are welcome and the whole house is filled with the joy of their presence. And the person always apologizing is the host, that they might have more to offer.

But here, it seems guests are supposed to apologize all the time that they’re taking anything. It’s like they think the host is burdened. I don’t understand it. But I know I never want to go to the house of any of these grown-ups, who make you beg for so little. I don’t want the cracker sandwi...

But if I can’t have that, then I don’t want them to kno...

Anyway, if you stand at the back of the lunch line and you don’t have any money in your account, you can wait and wait for the whole lunch period and then just as you’re about to...

At the fountain, you drink a ton of water until you have to pee. Then you go to the bathroom. You have to stay there for fifteen more minutes. You can wash oil off your face and fold paper towels into triangles. You can breathe on the mirror...

Then lunch period is over and they don’t know you haven...

If

you have a friend who leaves food on his tray, you can eat that before he throws it out, but I don’t recommend that because even young people here think they’re doing you a favor to feed you their...

Recess is the time to mention Kyle, who is my great friend. I have never been to his house. He lives in Chimney Hill with the Jennifers and Daniel W. His dad painted his room the colors of the Dolphins team and he has more games than I’ve ever seen in my life. Since I live in apartments, it’s too dangerous for him to stay overnight with us, and my mom would be shamed if ...

How badly we all want love. It’s tragic. How bad we are at searching for it.

At that moment, if you looked in her eyes, past the tears, I bet you wouldn’t even see the pain of a severed finger, but the shock of how cruel people can be. And how stupid it was to put her finger in a doorjamb, hoping for the best in somebody.

And if you think my sister would ever fall for anything like that again—now that we’re here in Oklahoma and lots of boys have that same way of showing they like you—then you’d be dead wrong.

That’s how my sister almost lost her finger.

I didn’t just tell you the story for no reason. I told you because it was the start of everything that would come later. It was the first step of how we ended up in Oklahoma.

And it wasn’t even the weirdest thing that ha...

when my sister opened the door and walked out a few hours later, she was suddenly happy again, as if everything was going to be alright.

when they asked her what happened, she said she’d met an angel.

imagine you’re six and you came home every day crying, begging not to go back to school. And the grown-ups just pat you on the head and say, “There there. It’ll get better.” But it doesn’t get better. Only worse.

Until today, you got your finger chopped off in a door and everyone realized they should have let you stay home.

If that was you, would you walk out two hours later into the living room—where the adults are sitting at the table having tea and biscuits and kicking themselves—and would you tell them everything was fine, or would you milk it a little?

The answer is you’d milk it so

hard it would turn in...

There is no reason to come out and sa...

But that’s what she...

said she was lying i...

bed. By the door was a rolled-up Persian rug that we had brought with us for El...

up, she saw a man sitting on the rug. She didn’t know him, bu...

When she described...

eyes,...

hair, a glow like a TV in a dark room, white robes—Ellie gasped and said, “Oh...

A...

sister said, “Yeah,” even though she had no idea who Jesus was or what he looked like, beca...

of

him in...

He only said four words, “It will be okay,” which is funny, because that’s...

ups said, and it...

Ellie was the happiest I have ev...

Maybe because it me...

would be anothe...

“Your daughter’s a Christian,” she said to my mom,...

“Yeah!” said my sister, “I’m a...

Because she saw it made my ...

That was the moment that everything start...

It

wasn’t the bang. Maybe it wasn’t ...

f...

But it was definitely the st...