The fire flickering on her face projects shadows, covering the fear and intensity in her eyes. She takes a step back and leaps forward over the fire’s flames.

Every Wednesday night before March 21, the day of Persian New Year, which celebrates the rebirth of spring, sophomore Aryana Goodarzi performs a ritual for “Chahar-Shanbeh Souri,” the Festival of Fire.

After lining up “boxes filled with fire” every few feet in their backyard, Goodarzi’s family jumps over the flames reaching as high as a foot. This tradition is said to bring its participants good health and happiness for the new year.

The first few leaps are always the scariest and the most difficult, Goodarzi said. But after becoming accustomed to the height of the boxes, she said it becomes fun.

These traditions allow Goodarzi to experience glimpses of the Persian culture, the area her parents immigrated from.  Unlike Goodarzi, her parents faced multiple hardships, when they were growing up in Iran.

The Iranian Revolution occurring in the 1970s created a volatile power struggle between the Islamic extremists and the Shah (the then-leader who was backed by the U.S).

“There were a lot of bombings,” Goodarzi said. “My grandpa, when he was serving [the Shah] in the war, saw some scary [things] like people’s heads being carried away.”

Luckily, Goodarzi’s father, who was 9, escaped from the country before the revolution had intensified.

At the time, only women and children were permitted to leave Iran, legally, since men were required to serve in the army.

Her grandmother and mother, who was 15, safely crossed the border of Iran and arrived in Europe, but were immediately faced with immense fear and anxiety, when the worker refused to grant them their visas.

“He [the worker] was formerly held captive in Iran, so he purposefully gave my mother and grandmother a hard time,” Goodarzi said. “ [His mentality was that] ‘I’m not going to let you go to the U.S. because of what your people did to me.’”

Despite this initial unjust treatment, he eventually let them leave to America.

Since then, Goodarzi’s family has stayed rooted in their Persian heritage. Goodarzi is not afraid to support her culture, even though her generation has become more and more American.

She stays connected with her cultural roots by attending the community’s frequent festivities. For example, she and her family attends monthly parties where as many as 200 people congregate at a host family’s house.

There are so many people that sometimes Goodarzi cannot keep track of her guests.

“I’ve come out my room and there are families outside that are like ‘Hey Aryana, oh Hi!’ and I am like ‘Who are you?’” Goodarzi said. 

Nevertheless, Goodarzi still enjoys the endless Persian New Year celebrations.

On New Year’s Eve, her immediate family gathers together, while her grandfather reads a specific “dowa,” an Arabic verse from the Quran. Then they count down to the New Year and will usually attend a party nearby. Other customs include giving new clothes and money to children in the family. 

Along with celebrations, Goodarzi keeps in touch with her heritage through her native language. Understanding and speaking Farsi, the language which her family and friends speak, allows Goodarzi to communicate with those in the Iranian community.

“Everyone [at the party] is talking Farsi, and if you don’t understand it, it’s awkward,” Goodarzi said.

Ultimately, Goodarzi feels that the bond in the Persian community extends beyond the language and traditions.

“If you meet another Persian, it’s like we’ve got this connection,” Goodarzi said.