By Karima Diane Alavi

​When I worked as a university professor in Isfahan, Iran, the thundering sound of canons startled me each morning at the beginning of Ramadan. Eventually, I got used to the daily signal that the fast had just begun, a new day had dawned, and it was time to stop eating and drinking until the evening when the fast would end.

​That sound was nothing compared to the blasting of even more canons to announce that, with the sighting of the new moon rising above the mountains, the month of Ramadan was over. That’s when the real noise began. My friends and I walked along the wide, busy sidewalks, and watched vendors selling sweets, toys, and holiday clothing, enjoying a brisk and cheerful business until at least midnight. Everyone who was in their car rather than walking, apparently found it necessary to honk their horns as they inched through the street crowd. Tired babies were bounced in their father’s arms. Old ladies seemed to have cast off a couple decades of their lives, as they locked arms and maneuvered between crowds to get the freshest most fragrant flowers, knowing they’d cast their sweet scent through homes for days. It was official: the holiday had begun.

Eid al Fitr, or the Festival of Breaking the Fast, has several elements that are shared around the world, no matter where you join the celebration. The day begins with a special prayer. Depending upon the size of the crowd this prayer can take place within a mosque, or outdoors at places such as parks, or even grassy soccer fields. Muslims in Houston fill the downtown convention center on this day. The prayer service includes a khutbah, or “sermon” offered by an Imam. This prayer often encourages attendees to continue their heightened focus on religious practices such as extra prayers, generosity, and words and acts of kindness, those things that were heightened during the month of fasting. At some ceremonies, prayers are preceded by donations called Zakat al-Fitr. These donations are distributed to help those in need.

​Traditions around the world may differ from that point on, with many mosques, or even cities, hosting festive activities like games and rides for children. Many Muslim organizations hand out toys that were collected through an annual Eid Toy Drive. The Eid celebration sometimes continues for two or three days, depending upon the country where it’s being celebrated. No matter where the Eid is enjoyed, it’s a time to visit friends and family, to rejoice in the completion of another month of fasting, and the beginning of a new month.

The Many Foods of Eid al-Fitr:

​With the completion of the Ramadan fast people celebrate around the world. Of course, these events involve enjoying a wide variety of foods, depending upon the location of the festivities. Sweets, including dates, are usually accompanied by tea. If you were to celebrate in Syria or Lebanon, chances are, you’d be served a shortbread cookie called Maamoul, often stuffed with dates, pistachios and walnuts before being sprinkled in powdered sugar. Variations of this recipe are found in Iraq, Egypt, and Sudan, among other places.

Somalis often break the fast with a bread that’s similar to a crepe, but with a variety of spices added. Also dotted with powdered sugar, this is dipped into yogurt before eaten. Breaking the fast in India, Pakistan or Afghanistan? Be ready to enjoy Sheer Khorma, a mix of dates, milk, sugar, pistachios and almonds. You can also assume that baklava and halva, popular sweets in the United States, will appear around the world as part of the Eid celebration. Are you catching the focus on sweets here? That’s no coincidence. The Prophet Muhammad always broke his daily Ramadan fast by eating an uneven number of dates, accompanied by water. This tradition of enjoying the sweetness of dates, along with the “sweetness” and joy of life, faith, and family, continues to be celebrated around the world during each day of Ramadan and on the morning of the Eid celebration.

Beyond the sweets, there’s a broad range of foods enjoyed in different parts of the world. These include dumplings stuffed with lamb or beef, a variety of kabobs served over jasmine or basmati rice, and traditional salads and soups.

If you’re interested in trying holiday recipes, this is a good place to begin: https://www.foodnetwork.com/holidays-and-parties/photos/ramadan-recipes

2025 Eid al-Fitr at the Dar al Islam Mosque and Education Center, Abiquiu, New Mexico:
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This year, Dar al Islam hosted its largest ‘Eid celebration of its four-decade history. The opening prayer was attended by approximately 150 people. The crowd swelled as the day moved on, with many local visitors taking advantage of the open invitation to join the festivities. By the end of the Eid celebration the number of visitors had grown to 300, including non-Muslims who stopped by to chat, tour the site, and enjoy refreshments. There were children kicking soccer balls between them, enjoying the playground, and assuring that the bouncy house was busy.

By Danielle Prokop, Source NM

​New Mexico now allows residents to carry and use virtual driver’s licenses. But for now, they’re mostly just taking up memory on your phone.
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A digital version of your ID won’t let you swan through local airport security for weeks — or maybe even longer, and it’s unclear how many businesses will let you use it to prove you’re old enough to buy alcohol or cannabis.

Earlier this year, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 88 to allow New Mexico to join a handful of other states in developing digital identification for smartphones. Arizona and Georgia first launched their efforts in 2021, and Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Maryland and Ohio followed, while California is still piloting their program.

The process for getting a digital ID includes taking photos of the physical card –  front and back –  and then submitting images and video of the ID-holder’s face to the New Mexico Motor Vehicle Department.

But while it only takes a few hours to get the digital ID, actually using it somewhere may take a few more months.

New Mexico currently doesn’t have airport security checkpoints that allow for digital ID, it’s illegal to drive without a physical license in the state,  and restaurants, liquor stores and cannabis shops may take a while to adopt the technology to use it.
Restaurants and other venues that sell liquor are going to need training, said Carol Wight, the chief executive officer at the New Mexico Restaurant Association.

“We’ve got to start educating folks, the general public and the people who are taking these IDs,” Wight said. “So it will probably take a couple of years before this becomes what everybody’s using.”

Wight said top officials at the Department of Taxation and Revenue alerted her to the program’s start in a call last week, and that the New Mexico Restaurant Association will plan a webinar on the program in coming weeks.

State licensing officials sent emails to businesses on Thursday, notifying them that digital IDs can now be used for purchasing age-restricted items such as alcohol, cannabis and tobacco.

The state released a verification app the state created called NM Verifier, which businesses can use to read the digital IDs in order to sell age-restricted items.

A spokesperson at the New Mexico Motor Vehicle Department did not provide answers Friday to questions about how many digital IDs have been issued, and how many businesses have downloaded NM Verifier.

The federal Transportation Security Administration allows digital IDs to pass through airport security checkpoints in places around the country, but hasn’t installed the technology yet in New Mexico airports.

The state’s announcement said that digital IDs will be able to be used at Albuquerque’s Sunport and Hobbs-based Lea County Regional Airport “in coming weeks,” but no other details were available.

A spokesperson for the Sunport deferred comment to the regional TSA office in Albuquerque, who did not respond to Source NM calls or emails for comment.
Lea County officials said they were surprised by the announcement, and said they would seek additional information from TSA officials before making a comment.

​By Patrick Lohmann, Source New Mexico
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National fire weather forecasters warn that most of New Mexico will face above-normal fire potential this month, and those conditions will worsen until at least until the monsoon season begins in July.

The National Interagency Fire Center issued its April wildfire outlook Tuesday, presenting a series of maps showing New Mexico with snow pack far below normal, along with severe drought and above normal average temperatures expected throughout the summer. 

Those factors combine to make the state, particularly the western two-thirds, at high risk of wildfires beginning in May, according to forecasters. 

‘It’s bad’: How drought, lack of snowpack and federal cuts could spell wildfire disaster in NM

So far in New Mexico this year, 222 wildfires have started, affecting 31,675 acres. Humans caused the vast majority of those fires, according to the Southwest Coordination Center. The Mogote Hill Fire near Wagon Mound, which burned an estimated 15,000 acres, ranks as the biggest New Mexico fire so far this year. 

Last week, New Mexico State Forestry released daily wildfire awareness tips, including how and when to safely burn debris. 

The above-normal wildfire potential occurs amid federal cuts to the United States Forest Service, including probationary employees who often had wildfire suppression training.

Proposed federal lease terminations also include two New Mexico wildfire dispatch centers covering one-third of the state, though U.S. Sen. Martin Heinrich’s office recently told Source New Mexico that he had received “assurances” that the dispatch centers would stay open. 

A Heinrich spokesperson noted, however, that his office was still awaiting  official confirmation about the dispatch centers from the General Services Administration. The Heinrich spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday as to whether that official confirmation had yet arrived. 

Source New Mexico is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Source New Mexico maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Julia Goldberg for questions: [email protected].

Courtesy of NM Soil Working Group

Silvopasture is the practice of incorporating trees and shrubs into animal grazing pasture. At Rio Nutrias, the goal is to provide pasture for animals between beneficial tree and shrub lines, create a food forest, and protect the soil from wind and heat. By stacking ecological functions the whole becomes larger than the sum of its parts.

Rio Nutrias Farmstead is located at an elevation of 7,500 ft. in Northern New Mexico. Field Day hosts Lucas and Chelsea Esquibel are working to improve the soil surrounding their immediate homestead by creating a high desert Silvopasture on about 3 acres of degraded cow pasture. So far, they have removed sage brush, installed 5 swales, spread compost and mulch, seeded a fall cover crop, and protected the area from grazing.

At this Field Day we’ll introduce the concept of Silvopasture and its soil health benefits. You will get hands on experience with:

• Seeding a cover crop with a no-till seed drill;
• Spreading mulch;
• Planting windbreak tree seedlings on swales.

The work on the Silvopasture has been done through the New Mexico Department of Agriculture’s Healthy Soil Program (HSP). At the workshop, Chelsea and Lucas will share their story of participating in the HSP and you can meet HSP co-lead Katie Crayton.

As always, this Field Day is free of charge. Overnight camping is welcome! A delicious, locally sourced lunch will be provided. Please sign up in advance so we know how much food to prepare.

• When: Saturday April 12, 2025 at 10am - 5pm
• Where: Rio Nutrias Farmstead, Tierra Amarilla
• This is a free field day, but please sign up so we know how much food to prepare: https://forms.gle/DntvqFz4sYZo76RRA

​As always, this Field Day is free of charge. Overnight camping is welcome! A delicious, locally sourced lunch will be provided. Please sign up in advance so we know how much food to prepare.​

This Field Day is presented by NM Healthy Soil Working Group in partnership with the Seeding Regenerative Agriculture Project, Alianza Agri-Cultura de Taos and Taos County Economic Development Corporation.

River Source is hiring for a 4-week paid internship opportunity in watershed management and ecological restoration. This position is open to 15-25 year old young adults.

>4 Crew members: High school students in 9-12th grade, or youth aged 15-20, or recent graduates with an interest in natural resources, environmental management, and/or water and healing the planet.

>1 Crew leader: Young adults who are 19-25 years old with an interest and/or experience in working in teams, a passion for water, watersheds, natural resources, healing the planet and leadership development.

This is a paid internship, sponsored through River Source and Partners in Education Foundation, starting on June 2nd, 2025. The internship activities will take place near El Rito.

Work-Learn Activities may focus on:

• ​Collecting natural resource data using global positioning systems (GPS) and assessing potential locations for watershed restoration work;
• Learning and applying biological monitoring, stream ecology, and assessing the effectiveness of environmental management practices;
• Conducting ecological assessments in riparian areas;
• Building erosion control structures to improve soil moisture, vegetation, and wildlife habitat;
• Making connections with other peers and having fun, while making money!

Crew member’s pay: up to $17.50 per hour for an estimated 168 hours of service
learning.

Crew leader pay: up to $22.50 per hour for an estimated 180 hours of service learning.

Internship period & supervision: The work will occur on a Monday-Friday schedule, from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm for most weeks, but on some we may work longer days and only work 4 days per week. Crew members need to have transportation to get to and from the starting work location which is at Mesa Vista High School. Carpool options may be available if interns/families can coordinate.

Interns will learn under the direct supervision of River Source staff and Victor Jaramillo.

Apply online for Crew member or Crew leader:
Crew member application: Click here
Crew leader application: Click here
Applications are due on April 7th, 2025

​If you cannot complete the application online, please email [email protected]
to get a copy of the application to print out and send to us via text or attached to an email.

By Carol Bondy

Nothing like waiting until the last minute.   Last week I renewed my driver’s license and got a Real ID.   It was actually pretty painless.   I brought in the required documents and even brought in a few extras following these requirements.  New Mexico MVD is open by appointments avoiding the crowds and long wait times of the past.   When completed you’ll be given a temporary license.  Your actual license will be mailed to you.

• REAL ID Requirement:

Beginning May 7, 2025, you must present a REAL ID-compliant driver's license or another acceptable form of identification to board a domestic flight, enter a federal building, military base, or nuclear facility. 

• How to Identify a REAL ID:

Check if your New Mexico driver's license or ID card is REAL ID compliant by looking for a star symbol. 

• Acceptable Forms of Identification:

According to TSA, in addition to REAL ID-compliant licenses, other acceptable forms of identification include a valid U.S. passport, passport card, or military ID. 

• Where to get a REAL ID:

You can obtain a REAL ID at a New Mexico Motor Vehicle Division (MVD) office. 

• Why get a REAL ID?

If you plan to fly domestically or enter federal facilities, it's recommended to obtain a REAL ID to avoid any potential issues with identification requirements. 

• Standard Driver's License:

Standard driver's licenses will not be accepted for boarding domestic flights or entering federal facilities after May 7, 2025. 

• Enhanced Driver's License

State-issued Enhanced Driver's Licenses (EDLs) are also acceptable alternatives for official federal purposes such as accessing a Federal facility or boarding a commercial aircraft. 

Digital IDs accepted at select airports.   You must check with your airport and always carry your actual ID with you. 
For information on how to add your drivers license to your Apple Wallet click here. https://support.apple.com/en-us/111803

By Chase Barnes
Courtesy of Golden Apple

In its third year, our program continues to strengthen New Mexico’s teacher workforce with local talent

NEW MEXICO - The Golden Apple Scholars Program in New Mexico, a nonprofit dedicated to preparing, supporting, and mentoring aspiring educators, is pleased to announce that applications for 2025 are now open.

Aspiring teachers have until April 8, 2025, to apply.

The Golden Apple Scholars Program in New Mexico provides future educators with hands-on classroom experience, personalized mentorship, instruction from award-winning teachers, a financial stipend, and job placement support after graduation. By developing highly qualified teachers from local communities, the program prepares graduates to return to their home areas, helping to close the gap in New Mexico’s teacher shortage. According to a New Mexico State University report, the state faced 737 teacher vacancies in 2024.

“Our program is already transforming the education landscape in New Mexico,” said Alan Mather, President of The Golden Apple Foundation for Excellence in Teaching. “We are committed to building on this momentum by training more passionate individuals who will make a lasting impact in classrooms across the state.”

Golden Apple Scholars are selected for their dedication to education and their commitment to serving students in high-need areas. Since its launch in 2022, the program has welcomed 120 scholars, representing 23 out of the 33 counties in New Mexico. The Golden Apple Scholars Program in New Mexico aims to have 100 teachers in New Mexico classrooms in the next four years.

“Golden Apple succeeds in New Mexico because it inspires teachers and students alike,” said Golden Apple Scholar Sahira Mendivil, a resident of Farmington. “They see it as more than a job—they're inspiring high schoolers and college students to pursue a meaningful career.”

The program offers teacher preparation and financial support for high school seniors and college freshmen and sophomores who are driven to teach. Scholars receive up to $15,000 in financial aid, extensive classroom experience, social-emotional support, job placement assistance, and mentoring from award-winning educators.

Applications and referrals can be submitted online at GoldenApple.org/Scholars-New-Mexico.

About Golden Apple
Golden Apple’s mission is to inspire, develop, and support teacher and school leader excellence, especially in schools-of-need. Our leading-edge preparation delivers exceptional teachers who make an impact. We help students thrive in the classroom and in life. Our vision is for every classroom to have a great teacher, and to realize this, we are committed to making a material difference in resolving the teacher shortage throughout New Mexico.

Submitted by Carol Bondy
Courtesy of the Army Corps of Engineers (first two paragraphs)

The Swim Beach section of the Cerrito Recreation Area will be closed to vehicle traffic beginning April 1st, 2025, and is scheduled to continue through October 15th, 2025.  This closure will affect the Swim Beach, Paddle Craft Launch area, and group shelters 4 and 5.

Visitors may park at the corral area at the Vista Trailhead, but will still need to pay the $5 day use fee.  Parking in front of group shelter 2 is reserved for visitors with group shelter passes only.  The restroom at the paddle craft launch will remain open for general visitor use, but restrooms at the group shelters are reserved for group shelter use only.

The Federal hiring freezes have left the Corps of Engineers unable to fill Ranger positions which have necessitated a reduction in services.

In an article in the New Mexican, district spokesperson Elizabeth “Lisa” Lockyear reports the area is being closed to vehicles due to a shortage of park ranger staff. The decision was made out of an abundance of caution, Lockyear wrote in an email to The New Mexican. Abiquiú Lake is short three park rangers, but the staff is “fully functional,” Lockyear wrote. “Public safety is our main priority at our lakes and we don’t want to stretch our park rangers to where they are limited in their ability to respond to public safety needs at the lake,” Lockyear wrote.

Should it put the lotion on its skin, now that it's nearly forty?

By Zach Hively

I’m nearing forty.

Reaching this age teaches a man a lot of things, among them that forty is not nearly as old as I always thought it was.

I came by this delusion honestly. You see, my parents, when they were nearly forty, were significantly older than I am now.

I can also think of one middle-school teacher in particular who skewed my perceptions. He had the visual texture of a neglected Red Wing boot. I thought he had simply been worn down by very many years of life and sunshine. Now, having also been worn down by almost forty years of my own, I realize he had something extra: excessive exposure to middle schoolers. For putting up with the likes of us for nearly two decades, he looked great.

Even though I’m not as old as other nearly-forty-year-olds, I still need to take certain precautions into consideration. Like continuing to limit my exposure to middle schoolers. Like learning what exactly a 401(k) is. Like partaking in routine health exams recommended for Men of a Certain Age, Whether or Not We Agree with That Age.

It’s in my interest not to die young even if, on paper, I’m getting older.
I’m beginning with what appears to be the least invasive of these routine health exams, which is a skin cancer screening.

I took great skin care precautions in many of my earlier years. For instance, I wore a baseball cap—the same baseball cap, mind you—for about four presidential terms, back when we youths curved the bills of our caps and wore it over our faces. This fashion provided an amount of shade and shielded me, at some distance, from an obvious lack of coolness.

​I also wore a shirt in outdoor public spaces for most of my adolescence and young manhood, due to such debilitating body image issues as acne, lack of muscles, and middle schoolers being really mean at the pool, even to college graduates.
​
All for naught.

If you listen to skin health experts, you learn that you are at heightened risk for skin cancer if, like me, you have left the house at any point. Your odds worsen if you went out in daylight hours. You might slough off your epidermis every month or so, but the UV radiation? That sticks like glitter, and it gets everywhere.

That’s how you get spots like this one on my arm. I thought it was yet another weird zit. But then it didn’t pop and it never went away. For two years. Nothing to worry about at thirty-seven, I figured. But now, as close to forty as I’ve ever been, this spot inspired me to figure out whether or not I have insurance, and what, if anything, it covers.

Then I had to call and make an appointment with a dermatologist who, at least in that moment, accepted my insurance. That’s right: the don’t-make-me-use-the-phone generation is entering its big four-ohs. In case you wanted to feel old too.

The dermatologist’s office scheduled my critical preventative care appointment several months out.

Fortunately, this placed my appointment in that small window when health insurance companies were reluctant to deny any coverage at all, especially for handsome white men.

I arrived on time, which is late, to fill out my emergency contact info. You’d be surprised how often recommended routine care goes sideways. Unless you’re American. In which case, you’re surprised to learn that there is such a thing as recommended routine care.

Then they put me in a room with a doorway in full view of the lobby and told me to strip to my underwear.
​
So I’m in there, down to my skivvies, for two trained medical professionals to inspect at their leisure. They make casual chit-chat to put me at ease and make a conversation in my underwear feel more normal. Their idea of casual chit-chat, it turns out, is asking me what they’re looking at today.

I balk.

I don’t know. That’s why I’m HERE.

In this room, our expected medical knowledge directly correlates to the layers of clothing we are wearing. The only resource I have in my pocket (which is over there on a chair at the moment) is the internet. It has convinced me that I am a walking squamous cell carcinoma because I forgot to wear my cap that one time.

So they whip out what sure looks like a black light flashlight. This makes me nervous. I don’t know what that black light will reveal on my skin. Remember, I was once a middle schooler. There is no telling what stains might show up. Also, isn’t UV light what caused me to need this checkup in the first place?

But the trained medical professionals don’t seem concerned. They flash that radiation stick over every inch of my skin outside of my undies, and as a sign of their advanced education, they do not make a single hurtful comment about my physique. They aren’t concerned with any of my many spots, despite every one of them sure looking irregular to me after I stare at them too long.

I point out the not-a-zit on my arm, which the trained medical professionals seem to have overlooked. They freeze it off to shut me up and make me confident that I am getting my insurance money’s worth.

They recommend I come back once a year for the rest of my life, just to be safe. They even rebook my next appointment for one year later, down to the minute. I appreciate their faith that I, who will be nearing forty-one at that point, will still be kicking.