In America, Christmas is the king of all holidays. To be left out of Christmas is the ultimate minority experience.

Elinor Lipman is to tweets what Shakespeare is to sonnets.

Marriage, in my culture, has nothing to do with romance. It's a matter of logic. If Mr. and Mrs. Ahmadi like Mr. and Mrs. Nejari, then their children should get married. On the other hand, if the parents don't like each other, but the children do, well, this is where sad poetry comes from.

My father's motto has always been 'Room in the heart, room in the house.' As charming as this sounds, it translates into a long line for the bathroom and extra loads of laundry for my mother.

My parents are highly evolved worriers. ... If worrying were an Olympic sport, my parents' faces would have graced the Wheaties box a long time ago.

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

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