sideyard

Well, before I start to record this, I must admit that I may not have a WESTSIDE STORY for you, but I certainly have a SIDE YARD STORY to share with you all! So relax but not too relaxed and get in the act of the preservation of our Nature which includes the Earth and everything in it from me to you and everything and every living being in between!

Once upon a time there was a family of three who moved from Ginger Blue, Mo. to Pen Argyl, PA. The man was a mid-westerner, born and raised in Oklahoma, the wife was a Persian/ an Iranian born complex woman who moved to this country of America many years ago, first as a student, and then as a so called: Legal Alien and she had a card namely a Green Card which was not even Green, to prove her alienship:-) The year was 1992, and the month was month of July.

B & W Oct. 2007, 423 Mt. Ave. Pen Argyl

We moved here from Ginger Blue, Mo. In July 1992 when our daughter Sienna Mae was only few months short of 3 years of age.

<>They moved from the part of the country known as Bible Belt to this area known as Slate Belt! So the belt is in place:-) This is a photograph of a piece of art, beautiful carved by someone in Pen Argyl, represents a great deal of respect and admiration, and recognition for the people who build this town, and the artist’s carving of a Slater truly is a manifestation of his craftsmanship and his love for what the Slate Belt represents! They moved as a result of a job that hired both the man and the woman who were artists to work in a ceramic plant. The job lasted only 1 ½ years, but they ended up staying in this town for many years to come! They opened their art studio 6 months before the plant closed its doors, they operated their studio for 7 years, and then they closed their business. Do not forget that that did not mean that they closed themselves, never! Although they went through lots of ups and downs during their time here, but they continued to try to stay true to themselves and they continued to work as individual multi-dimensional artists and individuals for many years to come!
<>
<> <>Before Khodadoost-Heath family moved to 423 W. Mountain Ave.:

The house used to belong to the family of a very nice lady who lived up the hills from us, her name was Verona Williams Edwards, and this was her mother and father’s home, and she was born in this house on March 11^th! A day from the early part of my move to this house and as soon as I found out, I always stopped by her house to wish her a happy birthday year after year after year. She told me a few times about the Sassafras trees in our side yard that her mother used to make tea from the leaves and so on. I used to look at the sassafras tree from my kitchen window while washing dishes at the sink, and somehow Mrs. Edwards’ memories would become part of my memories and often it would transport me to another time. Now instead of looking at a sassafras tree I am looking at a wall of a new house which is going up and I must admit that it depresses me greatly. To read more about Mr. Edwards and Mrs. Edwards, please read:

“Ode to Mrs. Edwards who spoke the limitless language of love & kindness”

May 12, 2005

It was on Mother’s Day, last Sunday that the news of the passing of my dear neighbor, Mrs. Verona Edwards, reached me. Apparently she passed away a day earlier on Saturday May 7, 2005.

My family and I were blessed for so many years for knowing her, now I am sitting in my home and I feel her loss, I miss her terribly. Our friendship started shortly after my family and I moved to the town of Pen Argyl over 12 years ago. She was born in the house that I live, so that added to my relationship with her.

Her life and her legacy can be summed up in the language she spoke. It was her language that attracted me to her in the first place. She spoke the familiar language that my late beloved mother spoke, the limitless language of love & kindness, a beautiful language that knows no boundaries. Over the years she showered me, my husband, and especially my daughter with her gentle kindness, not only year after year, but even after her passing. She knows how to work it out even after her passing to the next world, in a magical way, through her wonderful children that she and her late husband raised in this area. She often spoke proudly of her 3 children and their families, and now it was her dear daughter who came to my door yesterday to give me two envelopes, one was a thank you card for my family and I, and the other one was for my 15 years old daughter, Sienna Mae. How thoughtful of her. The card to Sienna Mae was a graduation card with an enclosed gift for her future graduation. We were all filled with emotions, and we were in tears of gratitude and blessedness of knowing her.

I had the honor of being this lady’s neighbor, and I have been indeed lucky to live so near such a beautiful soul. Mrs. Edwards had taught the world some little life nugget that shapes one’s life, mainly by deeds rather than words. What a privilege for any one who had the opportunity of knowing her. May we all follow in her footsteps.

She handled life and everything in it with utmost dignity and pride. I witnessed her day in and day out to handle her late husband’s illness and her own illness with such dignity and graciousness. She handled the death of her husband, Mr. Walter Edwards, who passed away a couple of months earlier with great dignity.

May the lasting memories of our beloved mothers & fathers stay with us forever.

Bahereh

P.S. A dear friend is gone, a beautiful house is left behind. The house is on the market now.

A Quiet Man faded away, but his quiet unspoken soul is still walking in the neighborhood of my memories. I have seen this man in the past 11 years that I have lived in this town. He happened to be my neighbor. I recall seeing him walking around this neighborhood, often with his loving wife, and just as often all by himself. He seemed to be immersed in his own thoughts, in his own world. He would smile at me just as quietly, a faint smile, a kind of a mysterious smile that I wish I could translate into something tangible. Perhaps the beauty of his smile was in its vagueness, in its sense of timelessness. He did not use many words to express himself. Yet the unspoken words were all there for the ones who wished to see it, and the ones who did not, could just walk passed it. When I first moved to this neighborhood, and when this gentleman, Mr. Walter Edwards, was more active, he came across as a quiet man, he talked very little to me, and overall, I did not know what to think of him. Yet with the passing of time, I gained a great deal of respect for him, and took a liking of him as a man who seemed to have endured greatly in his life. But every time I would look at his wife, I would tell myself, this man is BLESSED! One should get to know her, then s/he knows what I am talking about. Now, I don’t see him walking my neighborhood, and I miss him greatly. May he rest in Peace in God’s abode!

We moved here from Ginger Blue, Mo. In July 1992 when our daughter Sienna Mae was only few months short of 3 years of age.

Fall 1993, Sienna Mae in the side yard Summer 1993, Sienna Mae and Mommy Bahereh in the side yard

Shortly before we moved here we recognized that there is a street called: Walter Ave. So, I jokingly told my husband, Walter, that they have named a street after you, so we must move here:-) Then we came across this house on 423 W. Mountain Ave. and what we could see looking out from west side windows were: A Stop Sign, and Walter Ave. Sign. Sienna Mae decided that she must explore this town in order to find, Sienna Street, and of course also Bahereh Street, but these streets were not found to no avail! But we have two photographs by Walter Ave. sign, in one picture Walter is holding the sign, and in the other Sienna Mae is holding the sign!

This town is where she actually grew up in! She went to pre-school here, to Grade School, to Middle School, and yes for 4 years of High School. Sienna Mae practically crossed our what we were lead to believe that was our side-yard and went to Pen Argyl High School. Then on June 5^th, 2007 she graduated from High School. And it was late Aug. 2007 that our little girl, now all grown up, went to Moravian College.

We were lead to believe that this was our side yard simply because our previous landlord told us so that he owned it and as long as we took care of the land, it was for our use. Then came March 2005 when the house was sold and we met our new landlady and landlord whom informed us that the side yard was not part of this house and was not sold to them. It belonged to someone else now. Well, we felt quite relived when we met our new landlord and landlady, we connected, we became friends as we are to this day! But we continued using the side-yard because we were the only ones taking care of the land, and regardless having this sanctuary adjacent to the house was quite a blessing.

It was on Sat. May 19^th, 2007, Sienna Mae’s Prom Night that the “FOR SALE” sign went up in the side yard proclaiming that it was ready to be sold. Sienna Mae saw the sign and said: “Mom and Dad this is a sign!”, meaning it was time to think about moving to a new place. We joked and told her that Yes, Sienna Mae, this is a sign, it is a For Sale sign:-) that was the way we communicated sometimes, through the language of humor! By early Aug. was time for us to move all of our stuff, picnic tables, raku kiln, chimnea, etc… to our back yard (except Sienna Mae’s yellow swing with its blue cord still dangling from a branch of a beautiful aged tree in the side-yard) now our only yard. By early Sept. the yard was officially sold.

Bahereh often thinks to herself that she has never lived in one place for so long in her entire life, even when she thinks back and reminisces about her fond memories from her beloved parents’ homes in Iran, she does not remember living in one house for this long! So comforts herself by saying that perhaps there is a reason that she is still living here! She jokingly says: I must continue with my photo essay on the side-yard, publish my book on it, and move on!

Then it came, the excruciating day of Oct. 8^th, Columbus Day, the day that officially the long lived aged trees started coming down! With it came Sienna’s yellow swing:-( How long the swing was there, 9 years when Sienna Mae celebrated her 9 years of birthday on Oct. 10^th, we put the swing up, and now only 2 days shy of her 18^th birthday the swing came down. Sadness swallowed our hearts, but we were helpless, so we left home after a brief celebration of early Birthday for Sienna. Sienna Mae was home from College, she woke up and saw the men at work, and tears started rolling down her cheeks and said that they are destroying her childhood memories:-( By that afternoon she said half jokingly and half seriously that she wants to go back to school and she added that: “I feel that I need to go back to school to HUG a TREE!!!” There you go Al Gore!!!

Actually Sienna Mae’s yellow swing with its blue cords was well represented in Bahereh’s HEARTizen Story which she wrote in early part of 1998- the story with one Universal Message that:

So Bahereh got to work and decided to make a photo essay of the whole progression, and she told herself that she always been interested in architectures and building anyways and this might be an opportunity for her to observe how a building goes up! This was the beginning of recording the work in progress by Bahereh!

Bahereh thought to herself that she has been in admiration of this charming side-yard with its trees that like a canopy were covering and overhanging this land for many years, but her sense of admiration was certainly were more enhanced from the day the FOR SALE Sign went up on Sienna Mae’s Prom Day/ Night on May 19^th, 2007!

Bahereh looked at the side yard as if her neighbor, Trees, Flowers and the grass is getting a face lift or may be a face down depending how one might look at it!! She thought that although the land is changing its face, yet at the end hopefully a good neighbor may move in who might have what it takes to preserve and embody the beautiful spirit of the TREES! A neighbor who might channel the spirit that was embedded in these trees, if you know what I mean!

With the coming down of the trees, we counted all our memories and celebrations in this side yard, we reminisced the many times of entertaining so many friends under the shades of these trees, and watching Sienna Mae growing up by running and walking this land.

On Oct. 9^th, 1^st thing in the morning, I was sitting on the porch sipping my coffee, I heard the kids, Pen Argyl High School students, the ones who pass our house on a daily basis to and fro school, getting to the side-yard new look, and one by one exclaiming: WOW!!! And I would whisper to myself: I am with you on that!

So I feel that this yard is not only part of my memories, rather it is part of the lives of so many people esp. Pen Argyl High School students who have passed by it over the many many years! No doubt the image of the yard is carved in the minds and the hearts of so many Pen Argylites. Thus it is NOT only important that my view is changing, okay I am also claustrophobic and the fact that my view is getting blocked more and more on a daily basis, which is an area of great importance to me, but more importantly and locally speaking, the view of so many Pen Argylites is changing, and of course environmentally and ecologically speaking it is the world view that is changing along with it:-) and this is a sad news for all of us:-)

Here is Bahereh, one of your tenants at 423 W. Mountain Ave. in Pen Argyl. Guess what? What?

I have lived at this address for 15 years or so, and for so long my view from my bedroom window was the stop sign, the Walter Ave. sign, and yes, of course the beautiful aged trees and my flowers and gardens, and for 9 years I looked at Sienna Mae’s yellow swing with its blue cord hanging on one of these trees in the yard. I believe we bought Sienna Mae’s swing for her when she turned 9 on Oct. 10^th, nine years ago, and on Oct. 10^th this year she turned 18! So you do the math!

<>As you know since Monday Oct. 8^th, 2007 which happened to be Columbus Day, the trees were cut down and my view started its constant changing, and I am making a photo essay of the whole thing! Sienna Mae’s tears who happened to be home from Moravian college that weekend, watching her childhood memories to be destroyed as she put it, my own sadness over the trees and I am sure Walter’s too all are a testimony as how much we have appreciated this yard for so long.

What is funny is as Columbus did not have a clue as where he was landed, so am I! This became even more pronounced yesterday morning when I heard some commotions in the side-yard, or what used to be our side yard! I went to get the camera to record what was happening, guess what it was: A Port-a Potty landed right in front of my bedroom window! This is a very drastic change that I ever wished for:-) :-(

Now I am thinking that if the house is the same house, but the view is drastically changed, does this affect the rent? Funny hahaha!!!

By Oct. 31^st the back hoe left the side-yard, then came Nov. 1^st, and tata!!!

From now on, Nov. 1^st always stands for a day that a Port-A-Potty landed on the side-yard of this address in Pen Argyl, PA! We call it the Port-A-Potty extravaganza!!!

And the back hoe operator was a very hard working nice man, but I am sorry to say that all the pictures I took from him looks exactly the same! The same because almost in all the pictures he had a cigarette hanging from his mouth:-)

My view keeps on changing and the walls are getting taller and taller as we speak!

It started getting uglier and uglier and it started blocking my view more and more, and it really started getting to me, I hate it!

My view is getting blocked and the site is getting uglier and uglier, my God I hate it! I cannot deny it anymore, I do not like it! Now I am thinking of what Sienna often tells me, esp. when I made the back yard pleasant looking and brought it to her attention, she said: Mom! Stop making the best out of everything!!!

I must continue with my photo essay on the side-yard, publish my book on it, and move on!

<<<… Good morning from the hills of Pen Argyl, PA! As I mentioned it to you, today, Nov. 3^rd, 2007, I woke up shortly after 6 a.m. with the beautiful and enticing sound of the hammer in the ugliest ever construction site next door where it used to be our side-yard. I certainly miss the sound of the rain on the leaves of the trees, the sound of the wind traveling throughout the trees, and the sound of the leaves under my feet in the yard, but oh well, that’s life and it is what it is! It is getting extremely ugly here but don’t tell Sienna Mae!...>>>

Over these past month or so, I have made many jokes about what this property was going to become, from a parking lot, to a Olympic size swimming pool, to … But by the sight of the walls going up, and looking at the size of it, I am convinced that we are building a MATCH BOX! It looks that smallJ Or as some they call it: Gooz Ghootie which you don’t have to know what it means, only you should know that it sounds even funnierJ:-):-):-)!!!

And when Sienna came home on Nov. 2^nd, I throw my newest joke at her that we have made a guest house next door complete with a Port-a-Potty! Funny haha!

What is funny is that the work stopped by 9a.m.:-) I guess now that I am up and running, there is no more need for wakeup call on Sat. morning:-)

Still is Nov. 3^rd and I must admit that I terribly miss the sound of the wind traveling in the tree, and the sound of the rain on the leaves of the trees, on the ground, and on the so many flowers. The birds are gone, the squirrels are not coming around as much, and I yearn for the sound of the birds singing in my yard. I miss the autumn leaves which I was hoping this fall letting the leaves stay on the ground and my do not worrying of raking them, actually I was elated over the thought of it! No neighbor could complain or fuss to me that the leaves need to be raked, God forbid a few leaves might find their way to a neighbor’s yard! I even had my answer ready: “I do Not own and I do not pay rent or use this yard, It is SOLD now!” Needless to say that my wish did not come true:-(

I used to dance often to my many CD music around the living room. As the work started next door, it became increasingly harder to continue with my dance. The reason is that firstly it is hard to choreograph my dance with my CD music no matter how beautiful of a song when it gets enhanced :-) with the sound of a back hoe, hammer, and other construction equipment, and for another it is too visible without the trees that were sheltering and were shielding me from the outside world, the street! So now BOO HOO Bahereh the gypsy dancer:-(

As I mentioned it before the birds are gone, and this is a very sad news for me because my motto is:

After the removal of the trees, there were still a few squirrels and a chip monk who were faithfully still coming to the empty lot, to gather leftover nuts, and perhaps to visit and to reminisce over what this place once was! But as far as the birds, it seemed that they all left the property all at once, but a couple of times lately and to my surprise after a few days of silencing they came to the only butterfly bush that to my delight is still standing in front of my kitchen window. I saw them congregating in numbers a couple of times in this bush, from cardinal to blue jay, and to catbird! It sure was a delightful sight and you have to take my word for it, because as soon as I picked up my camera, they all flew away!!!

One more animal missing or even two is the fact that we had occasional visits from more than one group and at times a family of 5 or 6 deer family from mama and papa deer to Bambi fawns traversing in their outing in this yard eating berries, and even we had a family of turkeys, mama turkey walking in the front line with all the young in behind, following her in this side-yard of ours!

And Yes, how can I forget to talk about Daisy the cat, our faithful black cat who had gone through his so many adventures over the years, from being a studio cat for 5 years, to becoming a house cat for 7 years, to now trying to become a really house cat, meaning that he must learn to stay inside the house as much as his spirit can tolerate it! You see, Daisy the black cat is a gypsy and free spirited cat at heart, so for him staying at home is quite a challenge! Daisy the cat who also grew up a big part of his 12 years of life in this place is utterly speechless and confused. Speechless as what the heck has happened to this place. He actually said that to me believe it or not every time he gets a chance to get out of the house. These days we try to keep him inside as much as humanly possible, and I say humanly possible because Daisy the cat is an outdoor individual Cat at heart and by nature. We all are, we all are Nature, and Nature is us, that’s why we love it so much!!! Can you imagine how much Daisy the Cat misses the sounds of nature, esp. the chirping and the birds’ singing! I know he does, he told me so!

<>You see that you might have read this far and you have not yet heard me complaining about the dust that this construction site carries to all nearby houses, well that is because the dust in the light of what is happening is the least of my concerns, and I am sure many of you understand this statement!

What should I complain about, I don’t know, but I know how much I can miss the yard. Spring will come, and I will wait for my flowers to spring up again, but I despair that they might not spring out, and actually I am certain that they are gone for good!:-( They are gone, but not what represented, esp. those beautiful aromatic hyacinths and the gorgeous tulips, all bulbs left from the flowers that were presented on our NoRooz / Persian New Year table year after year on March 21^st! Then the bulbs were transported outside and planted in the gardens, and they faithfully came up every year in variety of colors, bright and colorful, and they delighted our senses!

To read more about NoRooz Celeb. in Pen Argyl, in Iran and around the globe, please read:

Spring season, and my love affair with the Hyacinths and the Tulips in my garden in Pen Argyl, Pa.

The aroma, the heavenly smell, and the beauty of the hyacinths, and the gorgeous tulips in my garden takes me all the way back to my childhood, to my parents’ home. Just like the Lentil & Wheat sprouts, they also remind me of all the wonderful Iranian (Persian) New Year’s I spent in my country, Iran.

It brings all the fine memories back to me. I smell the fresh air I have breathed there for so many years.

Our garden in Pen Argyl is full of hyacinths and tulips. When we moved here, the yard did not have even one hyacinth or tulip, now after 11 years of living here, and year after year planting the hyacinth and tulip bulbs from the Norooz table, now finally we have a full garden blooming.

I love nature, I love the Spring season when everything comes to life, but I especially love the Tubers. It is like having a love affair with nature, there is something magical about Tubers since they are hidden underground for many months, and one almost forgets where they were planted, and then suddenly they come to life. They come to life from apparent non-existence, and that adds an element of surprise to them. Non-existence?! Of course they exist, but not seeing them for months, and then suddenly they show up, this is where their sense of mystery lies for me!

Bahereh (610)863-3362 E-Mail: bahereh@HEARTizen.com Website: www.HEARTizen.com

<>As Sienna Mae who was coming home for a night on Nov. 3^rd asked me about the yard, and I tried to explain the devastation in a gentle manner, then suddenly she said my friend D. who is in her last year in Pen Argyl High School and passes by our side-yard on her way and to school, had called her and told her that: “Sienna! Your side-yard looks like poop!!!” So, my friend M. and I laughed and said that we could not describe it any better:-) :-(

After 9 years, Sienna Mae's swing came down from one of the old aged trees:

This photograph is showing our backyard with our faithful black cat, Daisy, sitting there confused as what is happening here!

Oct. 2007
Halloween in Pen Argyl/ Sunday before Halloween!
We renewed our vows in front of the side-yard:-)
And the writings on my T-shirt declares: I'm the girl your mother warned you about:-)

The good thing is that after this time no matter what they do, the land can only look better! It is hard to make it any uglier, isn't it?

A labor of love!
Carved Slater on Robinson Ave. in Pen Argyl!

Carved Slater on Robinson Ave. in Pen Argyl!

Nov. 21nd, Thanksgiving morning!

Incident: On Feb. 26^th, 2008 around 5 P.M., I (Bahereh Khodadoost-Heath) was getting in my car in front of my house, adjacent to the construction site, I stepped on the snow, and guess what, the dirt that was put over an already digging part of the property (I believe the digging was done a couple of weeks ago for Sewer line!) was filled with dirt, and it didn't take long for me to realize that the dirt was loose, and I practically was sinking in! So, what was the solution at that moment? Just to trip over and to fall forward on the concrete sidewalk!

What Happened To Bahereh: I came down flat on my stomach, bruised my legs, my hand, my forehead, and enlarged my already big nose by falling flat on my nose and bleeding, and then I had to make it to my class at NCC! The funny thing is, not funny haha:-) all the other bruises and scratches does not hurt as much as my twisted back does! So, I am not in a very good shape yet! As if I was before:-) I had to go for a couple of appt. at the Banana factory and Bangor School, by the time I was there, I could hardly get out of the car, but today I feel much better.

Suffered from: Lack of sleep, felt dizzy for a few days after the incident, Pain in my legs, forehead, nose, and esp. in my twisted back, etc...

Doctor’s Appointment: Called the doctor, I am supposed to be seen by the doctor on Wed. 3/5/2008!

2/27^th, 2008, and 3/2^nd, 2008: Took a few photograph of the HOLE where I fell, and also photographs of my face!

Today is Monday 3/3/2008: I have a little less pain, but I still think it is a good idea for my doctor to check me out!

The house next door sold on May 14^th, 2008, almost a year after the property went on the market on May 19th, 2007, the For Sale Sign went up! But of course this is not the end of my Side-Yard Story!

May 30^th, May 31^st, June 1^st: It appears to be that a wonderful neighbor with 2 teenage boys moved next door. My heart is overjoyed with delight, no more grief over the lost side yard now because a good neighbor can make up for the loss of the yard that we were feeling for the past few months! Strangely enough the man works at the same address on Babbitt Ave. where used to be a plant that brought our family of 3, meaning Walter, Bahereh, and Sienna Mae here to Pen Argy almost 16 years ago! We walked to work because it was only two blocks down from our house, and now the neighbor next door is going to do the same. When we came home yesterday afternoon and saw the truck in front of the new house, we realized from the address on the truck that it belongs to a company that moved a few years ago in the late 1990’s to Pen Argyl where the company that Walter and I worked for in early 1990’s used to be! What a coincident, although I know there is no such a thing as coincident!

Our neighbor’s last name is Salamone, when Nancy the realtor told me the name of the buyers of this new house next door, I joked and said: King Solomon?! Is Queen Saba/ Sheba is moving in with the King as well?:-)

And later we came to realize that our new neighbors’ dog’s name which is a small black dog is: Daisy! What a coincident! We have a Black Cat since July 1995 and his name is: Daisy! Now there are two daisies who live next door from each other. Our daisy’s name is daisy because our daughter,r Sienna Mae, who was only 5 years old at the time when our cat entered into our lives, named the cat, Daisy, later we found out that the cat is a HE cat, but the name stayed as Daisy any way. Our next door neighbor told me that when they got their dog named it a male name since they thought the dog was a male, later they realized that the dog is a female dog and changed the name to a she name, Daisy!