After I reached out to Fereshteh on Instagram, she told her father. He recognised my name.<\/p>\n
It turned out we were from the same village in Afghanistan, and our families had been neighbours. It was a complete coincidence.<\/p>\n
We were both Afghan refugees who had ended up in Iran; Fereshteh’s father had fled there many years before, and it was in Iran he got married and started his family. I had moved to Iran with my uncle as a young child.<\/p>\n
Throughout 2021, Fereshteh and I spoke on Instagram, and we quickly became friends.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Two](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/acef6e408c559be231a64590e9f3d9c4.jpeg\")
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Mo says he “just knew” when he met Fereshteh in person. (Supplied)<\/p>\n
Fereshteh offered to send the artwork she’d drawn of my brother to me in Australia. I’d relocated there in 2010.<\/p>\n
But I was already planning to visit Iran the following year and wanted to collect it from her in person.<\/p>\n
When we met in real life, I could instantly feel she was a really nice person.<\/p>\n
When you find the other half of yourself, you just know<\/p>\n
Soon after that first meeting, we decided to get engaged. We had a little party with our families and got our marriage certificate from the Embassy of Afghanistan in Tehran in 2022.<\/p>\n
Five weeks later, I had to return to Australia for work.<\/p>\n
We were hoping to get a visa for Fereshteh to join me.<\/p>\n
But because she’s an Afghan refugee in Iran, it’s difficult for her to get the paperwork she needs.<\/p>\n
![\"Mohammad](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/ac2d49efbb84cf991608024135060354.jpeg\")
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Mohammad dreams of the day he and Fereshteh will be able to go out for dinner together, away for holidays \u2014 “even going camping”. (ABC)<\/p>\n
I had no idea when we would see each other again, so a few years ago, I asked Fereshteh to send me some of her artworks in the mail.<\/p>\n
I didn’t tell her what I wanted them for, but I submitted them to a local art gallery in Bordertown, South Australia<\/a>, where I now live.<\/p>\n They all sold. People really loved them, and even asked for commissioned works.<\/p>\n Fereshteh was really excited about all the support and used the money to purchase new art supplies.<\/p>\n It’s been almost three years now since we last saw each other in person<\/p>\n We miss each other a lot. We’re really just at the start of our relationship, and we should be spending time together.<\/p>\n I was planning to visit Fereshteh earlier this year, but the week before I was due to depart, Israel and the US attacked Iran. My flight was cancelled, and I could not go. \u00a0<\/p>\n Loading Instagram content<\/p>\n When the conflict started, I lost contact with Fereshteh for nearly two months.<\/p>\n No phone calls, no text messages, no nothing. I had no idea where Fereshteh and her family were, or what they were going to do. It was really hard.<\/p>\n I was always thinking about her and what was going to happen. Were they going to get bombed? Were the missiles going to drop directly where they were?<\/p>\n Once the internet was restored, Fereshteh and her family texted me saying they were OK. I was really, really happy to hear that they were safe, at least.<\/p>\n There was nothing I could do, because there were no flights, and everything was closed.<\/p>\n Thankfully, Fereshteh and I can speak often now, but the internet is very poor, and we cannot video call. Still, at least we can talk. She’s alright, and her family’s alright.<\/p>\n Loading…Still, we’re hopeful about our future together<\/p>\n My dream is to meet Fereshteh back in Iran so we can do the ceremony and celebrate with our families, before returning to Australia.<\/p>\n Then we can finally build our lives together, and hopefully have children some day.<\/p>\n Stream Back Roads on ABC iview <\/a><\/p>\n Take a road less travelled to the small towns and communities that make Australia special.<\/p>\n I hope that she continues with her art when she arrives in Australia. But I’ll support her with whatever she wants to be or become.<\/p>\n She might want to study, or maybe even teach her own art class. In Australia, she’ll have the freedom to do that.<\/p>\n In Iran, she can’t study or go to university. She can’t work, and she can’t even sell her artworks. It’s too difficult, especially with the conflict happening now.<\/p>\n I’ve bought a house in Bordertown, and it’s like home to me, so I hope she’ll like it here too.<\/p>\n I can’t wait to be together again, going out for dinner, going for holidays \u2014 even going camping.<\/p>\n
![\"Lisa](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/a51199c547d4846b8978d4d4af8d0b38.jpeg\")
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