Gratitude Girl

Dear Mamanbozorg: You've been on my mind... You are always present in my heart and in my thoughts. I have so many memories of you. You always took care of all your children, and when they had their own babies, you took care of them, too. You really went out of your way for me, though, and I will never forget that. You looked after me at various stages of my life, and, no matter how old I was, you always spoiled me and showered me with love in every way a grandmother possibly could. Thank you for all the memories... They are all of love and joy. I remember we had so much fun when we took the train together; I remember laughing uncontrollably when you scrubbed my feet; I remember you preparing all my favorite dishes and sweets every single time I visited; I remember your remedies; I remember you getting up in the middle of the night to accompany me to the bathroom when I was afraid to go by myself in that huge house; I remember you playing with my hair until I fell asleep; I remem

Dear Koochooloo: You've been on my mind... I've known you since you were born – over eleven years ago. In fact, I was looking forward to your arrival into this world. I remember the first time I held you. You were such a tiny little girl! I didn't want you to be alone at home when I left for work, so I brought your brother home with us. You were – and still are – such a beautiful dog! You were black and white and had a black spot right on the top of your head between your giant rabbit ears, and you had gorgeous eyes with long curled eyelashes. You were tough, with a mind of your own, and I could tell from the very beginning you didn't want to be held or told what to do. You kept your distance and just watched me for weeks. It wasn't until you hit your head against the stairs playing with your brother that you let me hold you and comfort you. From that day on, you have loved me, taken care of me, kept me warm on cold nights, licked my wounds, and stayed by my side. T

Dear Denis: You've been on my mind... I met you on Twitter in 2019, and one of our first exchanges was about P.G. Wodehouse. I immediately noticed a mixture of intelligence and sarcasm in your tweets and got your book, The Awful Truth about the Sushing Prize . To be honest, it was the line When Idiots Fight Crime on the cover that got my attention, because of my personal experience in real life with such crime fighters. After reading your book, I realized I'd found a remarkable mind and didn't want to let go. Two years later, I'm still reading and re-reading your brilliantly written books and I still look forward to your tweets and to interacting with you... but I'm also extremely grateful for you. Thank you for introducing me to ocramism, for coaching me, and, above all, for being my friend. Even though you live on another continent and we've never met in person, you checked on me regularly while I had trouble breathing in 2020 and kept me company with your kin

Dear Steve: You've been on my mind... I met you in 2019 when you tweeted about your book, The End of Fear Itself . At the time, I was writing a piece on fear myself, so I was reading everything I could find on the topic. Naturally, I got your book and read it. I reached out to you to see if we could meet online and talk about your book. Thank you for agreeing to meet with me. What I saw in you during that talk was the extremely rare – and priceless – combination of critical thinking, honesty, and humility, each of which is both valuable and very hard to find. I haven't had the opportunity to meet you in real life, but I'm so honored and proud to have you as my friend and my writing buddy. Thank you for showing interest in my projects and encouraging me to write every day. Those short notes we exchange daily motivate me so much. I want you to know how much I appreciate you and how much I value our friendship. I am grateful for you. Gratefully, Noosha Ravaghi

Dear Dr. Ghiassi: You've been on my mind... I don't know where you are, but so many things in life remind me of you: words, jokes, stories, authors, books, etc. I have many memories of you, both in class and outside of class. The first time we met was at the university French department, and you asked me to read a passage from a book you had open in front of you. Only days later, I was sitting in your 19 th century literature class, listening to your lecture on Chateaubriand. It was in your class I learned to write about French literature, and it was in your class I analyzed the works of Camus, my favorite writer. You taught me – and all your other students – so much about French literature and even more about life. The combination of your knowledge, your wisdom, and your sense of humor made you the best professor in our department – and the best professor I've ever had. Being your student has truly been a privilege. I'm grateful for the knowledge you shared with me.