“In this wondrous age, however, praised be God, the commandments of God are not delimited, not restricted to any one group of people, rather have all the friends been commanded to show forth fellowship and love, consideration and generosity and loving-kindness to every community on earth. Now must the lovers of God arise to carry out these instructions of His: let them be kindly fathers to the children of the human race, and compassionate brothers to the youth, and self-denying offspring to those bent with years. The meaning of this is that ye must show forth tenderness and love to every human being, even to your enemies, and welcome them all with unalloyed friendship, good cheer, and loving-kindness. When ye meet with cruelty and persecution at another’s hands, keep faith with him; when malevolence is directed your way, respond with a friendly heart. To the spears and arrows rained upon you, expose your breasts for a target mirror-bright; and in return for curses, taunts and wounding words, show forth abounding love. Thus will all peoples witness the power of the Most Great Name, and every nation acknowledge the might of the Ancient Beauty, and see how He hath toppled down the walls of discord, and how surely He hath guided all the peoples of the earth to oneness; how He hath lit man’s world, and made this earth of dust to send forth streams of light.”

 (Selections from the Writings of Abdu’l-Baha, p. 20)

To carry out these instructions in practice is our struggle, our daily test.  And it is so easy to fall into the traps of our lower nature, which urge us to fight, to treat others with disrespect, cruelty, and even hatred.  It is an active process, something we must pay attention to and guard our behavior.

I have been so blessed in my life to be surrounded by individuals who manifest the positive qualities listed above.  It saddens me to leave the ones that I have served with at the Baha’i World Centre, but I am so, so happy that I have had the opportunity to meet them, if only for a fleeting moment in eternity.

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A brunch, as I usually do, with several dozen pancakes, bacon, eggs, potatoes, and the like.

A quick run up the mountain to take a picture.

An afternoon of discussion, ordering dinner to be eaten with chopsticks.

An evening with candles and the laughter between friends.

The sun ever-present and healing, and my memories are formed of these never-ending days. This is what I will remember.

Posted in Haifa, Personal | Comments (1)

more than
my molten eyes and sudden smile
there are years behind what you see
I am
more than your assumption of me
I am
images across a screen
I am
scraped knees and willow trees
I am
dirt paths and lace dresses

whispered secrets with my mother & father & sisters
shouted secrets with my friends

I am more than
the visual

I am
the sum of thousands of years of history
and the stories of my family

I am oceans and sand and soft green grass and finding arrowheads in piles of stone
journeys under endless skies and the sky was left behind under the pink city glow
I am…

And we shout so desperately that we are! We are human and we live/think/exist! Let me prove to you that I exist with one simple formula! The universe must know…we must know…I must know…

I am waiting here for you to find.
I am
more than
what you thought you knew.

Posted in Personal, Poetry | Comments (4)

Yesterday I felt sort of miserable.  And then last night it morphed into a full-blown virus of some kind.   These are a few anecdotes for you to enjoy:

1. I watched Season 6 of Scrubs.  And half of Season 7.

2. I have not left my bed all day…

3. Except for making a pot of soup and mashed potatoes.  I then took the pot of mashed taters into bed with me because I didn’t want to have to wash another bowl.

4. A friend called today and didn’t recognize me because she said, “You sounded like an old lady!”

5. Not much food left in our fridge, so today I ate: a gluten-free tuna sandwich, a pot of chicken soup, a bowl of ice cream (shh, I know you shouldn’t eat ice cream when you’re sick, but my throat hurt so much!), 4 cups of lemon/ginger/honey tea, two cups of coffee, half a bottle of orange juice, water, and mashed potatoes.   I had a craving for chips but we didn’t have any.  It seems like whenever I’m sick, my body demands the weirdest things.

6.  I have used up one tissue box. I am working on my second box.

7.  I may have talked in my sleep this afternoon, but since I was by myself, I really don’t know for sure.  I did wake myself up a few times, though.

8.  I didn’t even have to go to the pharmacy because I had everything in my medicine drawer. 

I haven’t had a cold in a really long time…actually, I was shocked that I didn’t get one earlier.  I think that Someone was looking out for me, because during the very busy planning and working of the last few months, I did not even get the sniffles (except for allergies to dust storms), and that is rare for me.  So I’m taking this illness with a measure of grace and acceptance that I’m just paying my dues.  But it would be really great to heal quickly…I have so much to do!

Posted in Humor, Personal | Comments (1)

I am sensing silence from you
maybe I am too sensitive
maybe you are too far gone.

I dreamed of you last night
there was no music playing behind us
underneath campfire skies.

I was told that you wanted to see me
and my instantly forgiving heart
opened my arms to you.

I think that mostly these dreams
are me, speaking to me
and you are just the messenger.

I wish that maybe someday
there won’t be a need for words
and you will tell me what you were thinking.

Posted in Poetry | Comments (5)

Much like the accidental discoveries of Post-It notes or Superglue, I found that I have the recipe for a perfect evening. Forgive me if the measurements are not exact.

4 lovely women

1 baby

gluten-free pasta salad/Persian rice/vegetable soup

homemade hot chocolate

laughter

I do not, however, recommend putting any of the above ingredients in the oven. hmm…I wonder what is the taste of laughter baked on 375 F…I have a feeling it is slightly chewy.

Posted in Friends, Haifa, Humor | Comments (3)

The eyes of strangers touch, leap across crowded spaces, and safe smiles reach the lips, are traded, and fade.  The touching of eyes crosses space, marble floors, dirt paths, and place settings with coffee stains and the remnants of sugar packets.

Eyelashes are beautiful things, wet with the tears that never fall from my eyes, or shining to frame your (their) face(s) as we (they) talk earnestly, in a thousand places and combinations.

I will hear my alarm in four hours.  In the darkness we fumble for our keys, and I will circle the stone paths in whispers for the first and last time.   Dawn prayers.

It all becomes more real, and in one month my world shifts again.

I was holding a brown child in my arms last night (in my dreams).  He had soft, curly hair and he was not necessarily my child, but I was caring for him.  I carried him through ballrooms, as technical crews set up the rooms and we wandered the back hallways.

We looked at each other, looked in each other’s eyes, and laughed, inches away from each others faces.  He grew up, in an instant, and asked why I carried him…he was old enough now.  So we walked past the zoo, and he talked to the animals, and we walked down the shore of Lake Michigan.

Posted in Baha'i, Haifa, Poetry, Thoughts | Comments (3)

Posted in Friends, Photography, Poetry | Comments (2)