Travels of Hazel

I remember we lived in the mountains of Iran with a few other families, all in small trailers. My father worked for some oil company as a driller. My mom set up her own little school for the kids as well as local kids. She would develop film in the bathtub, grow her own food and hand wash diapers.  A small prop plane would drop mail from the outside world once a month.

One of the locals who worked for my father on the rig wanted to get married but had no money for the wedding nor the dowry for the wife’s family. My father paid the expenses and slaughtered a sheep for the celebration. I don’t think my father ever encountered anything he could not do. Mom and dad were fearless.

My parents buried an infant daughter in those mountains of Iran. I remember when they noticed the other graves did not have markers, they paid to have a cross placed on each space.

These are just a couple of examples of the legacy of kindness, respect, caring and giving back that my parents passed down to me. I will be forever great full for my parents. 

I try to volunteer in every country I visit, my three amazing daughters all carry this legacy forward, as their children will. We are all in this life together my friends, and the knowledge that we as humans, are all the same, no matter where we live or our life circumstance. We all have the same hopes and dreams to live our lives as we choose, our children to be safe and happy and so forth. 

Enough with war, hatred and greed. Have we learned nothing in the history of mans barbaric tendencies of seeking power and money? There is enough wealth to end poverty, it’s ramifications, and the misery it rains down upon humanity.

It was in this spirit of helping others less fortunate than my self and carrying on my parents legacy that I visited Aziza’s Place, where I also had a personal  connection.

The facility is a learning center and daycare for the children less fortunate. They come to the center after school lets out, they are fed, showered, taught and loved. The staff who run it are truly angles of mercy. The complexities and hardships to run the center are overwhelming to me, yet these angels persevere every day to bring light, hope and happiness to these children in a safe, clean, and loving environment.

You would not know at first glance what life has put these children thru. They find beauty and joy in the world. The smiles on their faces ......... some are mischievous, some funny and some shy, like children everywhere. The center provides karate lessons, swim lessons, yoga, and medical care. They tirelessly seek out donors in the community for assistance with these programs.

These angles think of these kids as their own and worry and stress about their home life that often includes violence, starvation and desperation. I am told that at times, some of the families, who also receive bags of rice and check up visits from the staff, take their children to the dumps to hunt for plastics and other needs instead of sending the kids to the center.

The kids have the opportunity to learn English, Chamoi, math and computers, as well as basic life skills. Children everywhere deserve to feel loved and safe like they do at Aziza’s Place.

Because Aziza’s Place posted on my Facebook page a thank you for my visit, I will share with you that to honor my parents legacy of kindness and giving, Hazel and I upgraded their computer center, a small thing, that I hope will make a difference in the lives of the children and staff.