On the Street Corner

There is a small shop owned by a Middle Eastern man where I buy the best pistachios, cashews, and pumpkins seeds. With friends coming over for cocktails tonight, I stopped by to get a load to serve with martinis.

The shop is a congregating place for many of the Muslims who live in and around our community.

"So how was the reaction to Obama's speech?" I asked.

"Good, good," the shopkeeper replied. He is from Iran. "Who would have thought that an American President would speak that way in Egypt."

I wondered out loud why he had chosen to speak in Egypt rather than Jordan or Turkey, countries that are less authoritarian. However, my friend did not opine with words.

"Who do you think will win the election in Iran?" he asked me.

"I hope it isn't Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. All of the young people are rallying around Mir-Hossein Moussavi. Here in America, the young people helped vote in Obama."

My friend smiled. "In Iran, they will change the votes easily. Ahmadinejad will be president."

"They changed the votes here, too, remember, in 2000. We aren't so far apart."