What do you think of this story?
What do you think of this story?
An Iranian mother moves with herself and two daughters (Azadeh and Jaleh) to dearborn, michigan. she never really settles in, and hates the fact that her daughters aren't growing up "Iranian". After twelve years in America, mom is fed up. She's almost always grumpy and stressed-out. She leaves for the grocery store on one particularly bad day and has a heart attack at the wheel. She drives her car into a light pole, and dies.
The daughters (12 and 16) are put into foster care until Azadeh (16) becomes a legal adult. then, she takes Jaleh and gets into a college on scholarships.
That is basically the background for the story. Then, Azadeh gets hit by a car while crossing the road, and is pronounced brain-dead. Jaleh signs the papers to have Azadeh's heart donated.
When Jaleh eventually meets the family of the little girl who received Azadeh's heart, she finds out that they are as "un-Iranian" as a family can be. She know s that this is a racist statement, but she also knows that her mother would be mortified. the fact that her oldest daughter's heart is working inside an "American" girl would give her a second heart attack. The family invites Jaleh to stay with them, saying that she is almost like a sister to their daughter.
The rest of the story is just about Jaleh finally accepting that she has lost the roots of her Iranian heritage, but it must be carried on, even though she is living far, far away from The Homeland.
