I do not understand why some of my friends complain about the 15-day holidays during Nowruz, the Iranian New Year celebrations that start on March 21st every year. In my opinion, in a country like Iran where we have a corrupt bureaucracy, no harm is done because of the holidays. This is true even if there are no newspapers published during the period.

In fact, the long holidays are a great occasion for the relaxation of nerves and tensions for a people who during the entire year hear no good news anyway. And with the help of cheap gasoline prices, credit-bought cars, and travel tents, people during this time of the year acquire the opportunity to travel from the four corners of this vast country to the warm lands of the south, without the need to make hotel reservations or wait in lines at restaurants. They can stop near any tree or a bush and make their omelet on picnic stands. And if rain decides not to join them, they do not even have to go to a nearby school to set up their tents.

I do not worry about Nowruz holidays, but I am concerned about next year. What are people going to do when gasoline becomes rationed or costlier in this country, as has been suggested? What are all those people who have traveled around this year going to do then?

But even better than the holidays themselves is being forcefully away from the distressing and at times worrying news which we have been forced to pursue and analyze. What a good world it is without news, especially as officials too get the opportunity during period not to make constant comments on events, and can focus on Nowruz visitations.

How unfortunate that some officials however cannot bear the quietness of this period and rush to the media by any available means so that the national state radio and television, which since its creation has never had a single holiday, can have some news beyond the Nowruz traffic accidents and the weather forecasts.

How unfortunate must one be when stopping at a remote village to buy some candy for the kids he happens to accidentally hear the radio of a store keeper blasting the news that the honorable Minister of Intelligence has issued yet another warning to the “enemy elements” that they are under its microscope, threatening it to return to the public or face punishment.

Since I, my friends and my colleagues are fortunately not among the “enemy elements” and remain part of the public, we can be calm and unconcerned. But contrary to what Keyhan newspaper writes, since the enemy is at times not as obvious and apparent, how much must we struggle in our head to figure out the nature of the enemy that the minister keeps reminding us of.

In any case it was my misfortune that while traveling on the eastern edge of the Zagros mountains, my mind was busy trying to figure out something that I had left my town to forget.

But despite this, Nowruz holidays are not bad at all, especially if officials took them as well.