Dear Friends,
Henry Ward Beecher wrote “Gratitude is the fairest blossom which springs from the soul.” A better quote cannot express my gratitude this fall in the time of Thanksgiving. My heart overflows with the many treasures of family, community, and of nature for the energy and love it brings us.
Last month I was a guest presenter at the Imagining America’s 2026 National Gathering held at the UC Davis International House. The Imaging America conference is a national gathering of public scholars, artists, designers, students, and cultural organizers who join to address the most pressing issues of our time. This year the conference invited participants to share stories, research, creative works, and community practices exploring the complex transition from systems of fear and domination and towards restoring collective spirit. In my talk I introduced dance as more than entertainment. I explained that dance is a language, an expression of cultural identity, a means of preserving history, and a way of creating unity and healing. I then performed a Persian whirling dance for the appreciative audience.
After performing last month at the San Jose Pars Equality Center in San Jose for their annual Mehregan festival, the institution invites me back for an author presentation on my Companions of the Sun book on November 5, 1pm.
If you are in San Jose area, I visit BookSmart Books at its San Jose Eastridge Center store November 14, 1:30-2:30 pm, to read and present my book as well as answer questions. I look forward to meeting you there.
Also, this November I will be returning to the International House at UC Davis for their annual International Festival of cultures with music, dance, food, and art on November 7, 2-8pm. The Simorgh Dance Collective and I will be presenting dances of the Silk Road. Look below for details.
Hoping to see you in dance soon,
Farima
“Resist grasping for things you are looking for, they will flow when the moment is right, just as the leaves fall from the trees. Leave the familiar for a while. Let your senses stretch out like a welcome season onto meadows shores and hills. Change rooms in your mind for a day…”
-Hafez