At 74, Nahid, known as "Mother," still sees herself as fourteen. She believes God has given her a new life to inspire people at Kahrizak Charity Nursing Home who see death as the end. Her husband died six years after their marriage, leaving her to become both father and mother to their children. In 2014, her children sold their only home without her knowledge, forging her signature.
"My children broke my heart." She came to Kahrizak with a broken heart, a body that had survived breast cancer, and a surgically repaired femur. She believes God gave her a new life twice. After two serious illnesses, Nahid sees old age as a blessing rather than an ending. She loves butterflies and angels, decorating the wall beside her bed with those she has bought or received as gifts.
Coming to the nursing home near Tehran's main cemetery was her choice. She could not live under the burden of others' charity and hates pity. She believes God gave her a duty to bring hope and smiles to a place many see as the end of life. She says elderly residents need someone from their own generation to give them hope and help them enjoy old age.
When she arrived at Kahrizak with nothing, no one asked how much money she had or whether she was religious. To her, that is what God is like: generous. Kahrizak is like God's house, where people receive shelter and kindness without expectation.
Nahid believes God gave her a mission after two life-threatening illnesses: to help others. She wants her generous spirit to remain after her death. She sees herself as an angel and an example of hope for those who have lost it. She wants to help them laugh and fall in love because she believes she still has a young heart, a fourteen-year-old heart that beats for better days. She can still dance, love and care. For Nahid, this is the most beautiful life, found at Kahrizak among pure hearts, like newborns.
How old are you and how old do you feel?
"I am 74, but I never think about the age I am living with, because age is just a number written on a birth certificate. I believe it is not the certificate that tells me how old I am; I am the one who tells the world my real age.
If I started thinking about death after sixty, it would mean accepting that I am old and no longer able to live fully. To me, that would be the end of life. That is why I still feel very young. What matters is not how old I am, but how well I can make my heart accept the age I am living. I believe the heart can define a person's true age. If my heart feels young, my body will remain young, regardless of the number written on my birth certificate. Someone may be twenty but have no energy to do anything, feel depressed, lose interest in life, and see themselves as useless. But when I remain this strong and full of energy at my age, I feel as if I am only fourteen. I believe I am standing at the beginning of a new chapter of my life. For me, youth is not a number on paper. It is the desire to live, hope, energy, and the strength to keep moving forward. Every morning, I wake up with this belief and look toward tomorrow with the excitement of knowing that life can still bring new experiences."
What helps you maintain your physical, mental, and social well-being?
"If I had to explain it in one word, that word would be immortality. Living at Kahrizak Charity Nursing Home has taught me a profound lesson and changed the way I understand death. To me, death is connected to immortality; it is never an ending. This belief encourages me to protect my physical and mental health. Many residents here do not share this way of thinking, and I feel responsible for helping them live better lives.
A defeated woman cannot inspire others, so I must remain strong, both physically and emotionally, to fulfill the responsibility I have been given and offer hope to the residents. After overcoming breast cancer, I came to believe that I am not going to die anytime soon. I feel that God has given me another chance at life and placed me at the beginning of a journey in which I should spend the rest of my life helping people who may have lost hope in continuing theirs.
For me, every new day is the beginning of something new for myself and others. I wake up knowing that I may help another person experience a happier evening. The belief that I can put a smile on someone's face gives me the motivation to value life and feel younger than my real age. I want to keep that hope alive, too."
What advice do you have for aging well?
"My first and most important advice is to forget the past and live in the present. Regretting a face or body that you think was more beautiful when you were young will not change anything or take you back in time; it will make you sad. You must learn to live in the present and love people. Even if your body changes or becomes weaker, as mine has with back pain, you can find reasons to feel good. People often tell me that I have beautiful skin. What matters is keeping your mind young as you grow older, so you can face the challenges of these years and enjoy a good quality of life.
I believe each person decides, while still young, how they will enter and walk through old age. If you fear aging and believe that there are things you will no longer be able to do, you may make those years harder because you have already begun living as an old person in your mind. I believe that what matters most is in your mind and spirit, not in a body that changes naturally. We can, too, overcome nature's limits and continue to enjoy life. Aging has its own beauty; we are the ones who see it negatively. If we see beauty in the mirror and treat every wrinkle as good memories, old age will no longer be frightening. It can even become beautiful. I believe this is the most important secret to a good old age."
Life expectancy 2023
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