Nowruz Mubarak

"Tabriz," exclaimed the old shepherd, "Then you are very far from home my friend. I thought you were another one of those archaeologists."

"Archaeologists?"

"Yes," responded the shepherd, "They come to study the old ruins out here. Like that stone over there."

He pointed at the engraving that looked for all the world like the strange woman that Iksander had just made love to.

"What is it," asked Iksander eagerly.

"I don't know," replied the shepherd, "But the archaeologists say it depicts an old goddess named Ishtar."

"Ishtar?!?!"

Then it dawned on Iksander... Ishtar was the ancient Assyrian goddess of fertility, sex and sensuality. Surely this had to be a joke or a dream! There was no way that Iksander had just made love to the pagan goddess of a dead civilization!

"My friend," said the shepherd, gesturing towards him, "You must have had a long trek. Why don't you come back to my village? It's just up the road there. You can spend the night with us before you head back towards Tabriz."

"All right," said Iksander, "I probably need to rest for a while anyway."

As he started up the trail, Iksander noticed something making a rustling noise in his pocket. Reaching in, he felt a small piece of paper. He didn't remember having that on him before. Out of curiosity, he decided to open it up and see what was written on it. To his surprise, it simply read --

"I wish that I had a chance to see,

The face of my beloved,

What can I do? what can I do?"

So it wasn't a dream after all. A smile crossed Iksander's face as he looked longingly toward the stone which depicted Roxanna... Ishtar... whatever her name was.

"Are you coming, my friend?"

"Yes," replied Iksander, "Of course."

In the back of his mind, Iksander thought about how he would have to follow this route again next Nowruz. The ancients were certainly correct when they labeled the sacred peaks of the Zagros Mountains to be the abode of the gods!