Story:

This object is very meaningful to me. It connects deeply to my heart. When I was a child, we lived in a city in the south of Iran near a village where my father was born. When I was five or six years old, I went to this village with my grandmother, grandfather, and aunt, who lived there. They had a beautiful cow whose name was Goli. I named the cow Goli. I really loved her and she had a bell. But one day, we lost her. I was in the village when I heard the sound of the bell and found Goli. After five or six years, I returned to the village and found the house empty. The cow was dead. My grandmother gave me this bell as a memory of Goli. This was in Zabol, in south eastern Iran. 

This bell is connected to my childhood, my grandfather, grandmother, and the village. I have very fond memories of them. It is very valuable to me and has deep meaning because now I am so far from there. So this memory is something I carry with me. The original owner was Goli. I feel emotional about it because it symbolises big hope for me. Big hope. Because when Goli was lost, I found her with this sound. So when I lose myself in life, I listen to the sound of the bell. It resonates with me as a sign to find myself again, to find things I love, maybe find the meaning I am searching for. 

This bell is hope. It holds a special place in my life. Any time I want to feel close to my childhood or I’m really sad about my grandmother or something else, I listen to this sound and my life shines. It reminds me of my childhood, reminds me of the village where my father was born. The most important information it represents is about the culture from that village. The village is close to animals, trees and nature. This bell, I think, is a gift from the village, a gift from the animals. This culture has maybe existed for 10,000 years, and this sound is something every person knows. 

I talked about this story because my grandmother is dead, my grandfather too, and because I miss him, I miss her and I miss Goli. The bell reminds me of this emotion. It brings back a memory that shines like a light in the darkest moments of my life. That’s why it has meaning and is important to me. I didn’t have to leave. I chose to leave Iran because I wanted to find art. Art is freedom, dancing is freedom, and I wanted to find this kind of art. That’s why I chose to leave. 

I moved five years ago. It’s not difficult for a man to live in Iran. I’m a man and it’s easy for me, but I know that women have a difficult life there. I always want to support women’s lives in Iran, but for me, as a man, it’s not a big problem to live there. I hope that human rights and the rights of women and men are equal.

– Ali Kia