an open eye

i missed a step at 2 am
and thought of you,
paused, and remembered
that i had forgotten to breathe;
i'd forgotten that Haifa's heart
is that steady sound
that lingers after
traffic has stopped, long
past the incessant horns
of an impatient Man.
i missed a step before
the sun began to rise, and
realized that i was here.

beginning

in the beginning of the time of Man there existed one word - "Silence". the majority of people scattered throughout the world were able to communicate with each other through different inflections of this primal word; or, they simply said nothing, and held complete discourses with others with the batting of eyelids or raising of eyebrows. people paid more attention to each other back then, and to truly talk to someone, you had to be no more than 1 meter away.

days passed more slowly then as well, and at a more measured pace as things took longer to say - that is if you wanted to be thorough. mankind knew thoroughness back then. for example if one wanted to give a simply greeting such as "Good Morning, how are you doing today?". This would be said something like this: Blink (x2), raise right eyebrow, "silENCE" wink left eye (x2), raise left eyebrow. The mere physical exertion of talking in this way also kept Man soft and simple. It simply took too much effort to use strong "words" with this style of language.

the history books remember the day, however, when new words began to be created - not only new words, but new motions as well. the use of arms and legs to act as forces of verbal expression exploded around the mid-1400s. and as mankind found more and more ways of communicating, confusion inevitably set in as new methods began to be created instantaneously and no one understood another. i believe the record was set in the early 1900s where we experienced an exponential increase in mostly violent forms of communication - 12, 436, 678 every second was the rate set. unfortunately, this number has been increasing steadily since then.

unfortunately, the noise of the world has left the word "Silence" to be relegated to ancient times, and has not realized its place in the advancement of the Spirit of Man. this Silence though has not died; it continues to run its course and looks to overtake the speech of Man in due time.

It was late, late in the evening,

The lovers they were gone;

The clocks had ceased their chiming,

And the deep river ran on.

("As I Walked Out One Evening" W. H. Auden)

(wink, wink)

plotting your life

i am conscious of the fact, even while i type, that am sending something our from the blogosphere that will create a permanent link in the ever expanding, ever connecting reality that is the web. it's a pretty powerful realization that with the time, energy and capability one could begin to piece together threads of your life based on your involvement on the internet - I'm not speaking about getting ones identity stolen, i'm saying that eventually, as humanity ties itself more and more with the use of the web as the main means of communication, our lives could be basically plotted, step by step, year by year. privacy is slowly diminishing; isolation is fading away - yet another check on humanity, yet another force to make people see the need to live a pure life.

as we move to points in the development of mankind where nothing is hidden, i'm reminded of a quote from the Qu'ran that states:

"God grant that I may be remembered with honor by posterity."

give me food

quick post: just got back from a wonderful, WONDERFUL children's class :). my kid is really responding to me - it started out where he had so much energy and couldn't contain himself. he has gotten more patient, more polite and is just so happy throughout the class. makes one feel good.

secondly, today marks the first thanksgiving dinner that i will have this season. oh i can't wait.

yeah boi!

quote

something to meditate on today:

The beginning of all things is the knowledge of God, and the end of all things is strict observance of whatsoever hath been sent down from the empyrean of the Divine Will that pervadeth all that is in the heavens and all that is on the earth.

(Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 4)

intergalactic

winter has come. though, my readers from alabama, is it not the winter we remember. one of evergreens frosted with ice, and hillsides glazed over. around this time i always remember those long walks we used to take, braving the bone slicing wind and icy roads to get to our end destination - a fireplace. but sadly no, the winters here are of a different kind - rain, effusive amounts of rain and wind. to be honest it is a different kind of beauty that i enjoy quite a bit, but the mood is not the same and at times i feel conflicted in how i should greet this season (i know this sounds quite hippy - BUT it isn't :) - to deny that we are not affected by the seasons, and that they don't play quite heavily on our emotional subconscious is an erroneous mistake).

so, the season here is requiring me to make a mental shift - one away from nostalgia, to one that appreciates it for what it is. the rain and storms lend themselves to meditation and to feeling the subtleties of the world. it makes you want to listen to norah jones, corrine bailey rae, andrea bocelli, and just opera in general. on my way to work yesterday, i was humming madame butterfly in my head, sitting quite placidly, when all of a sudden the beastie boys start blasting from the radio - and for a brief moment in the history of the world intergalactic insomnia melded quite beautifully with the aria in my head, and i found myself at peace with the world (i am speaking sardonically of course - but sometimes its easier to make a point through the use of circumlocution).

on another note, along with four of my most fabulous friends, i went on a roadtrip this past weekend up around the kinneret. lunches on cliffs, driving along the coast of the lake, meals in quaint little restaurants playing the dixie chicks, and a very memorable and breathtaking visit to the Baha'i Cemetery in Tiberius made for one fantastic weekend - it was a much needed trip outside Haifa city limits. we will be getting pictures soon - there are some good'uns :D

last note - i started watching gilmore girls last night. warning: you'll want to strangle it and hug it at the same time. for the 3/4 of it that just kills you, that last quarter has such redeeming quality that it makes you just curl up with a blanket and hot tea to empathize the night away. darn it, i'm hooked.

short shorts, tight pants and no sugar - could it get any worse!

dear readers,

a lot has happened since you've been away. here are the highlights:

Sweet'n Low!? have you heard of Low'n Sweet! - in a bid to be "healthy" -whatever that means ;) - i've been shanghaied into a small group of individuals who are intent upon eating, and well, being, more healthy. part of this new regime entails cutting down on your sugar intake. the sugar-free diet guru of our group will be sending us pamphlets and other propaganda type material later on this week to brain wash..um..i mean HELP us in understanding what sugar-free means. (thelma i'm kidding, this'll be fun)

Russians and Israelis + short shirts and tights = extreme focus on face or feet for 2 hours - this past Sunday a big group of us went to go see a ballet. yes, it was my first, and I was super excited to go. I just have one suggestion, well other than the costume alterations, start the thing earlier - sheesh! If you don't, then you're bound to have half the audience falling asleep during the second half of the performance. The majority of it, which I was awake for, was quite entertaining as well, and I did marvel at the athleticism of each of the performers. In short - bravo. Oh, but don't get me started on the weird phenomena that is Israelis clapping. Ive never seen or heard something so synchronized in my life.

Bahji Day - each orientation group, after about 6 months or so, goes as a group to visit the Shrine of Baha'u'llah, the Mansion of Bahji, the Mansion of Mazraih, and I've heard if they have time, Ridvan gardens. It was quite beautiful - like a mini-pilgrimage. Here are some photos of the day, complete with posing shots (and yes, ezra is an integral part of all posingesque shots):





also, a while back when Navid was here, there was a Youth photo taken. go ahead and scan through it and see if you find anyone you know:

letter to the editor

dear World,

why don't grapefuit juice and cheese sticks mix well. (sigh) i wish someone had told me beforehand.

yours,
ill in israel

rythmic steps

Yesterday was a beautiful day. The majority of it was spent at Bahji, reading, praying and reflecting. I had, unfortunately, not been there in a couple of weeks - I must never let that happen again. As I concentrated much of my studying for that day on 'Some Answered Questions', my mind was continually flipping back to the Tablet of the Holy Mariner - I don't have any clear thoughts or statements to put down just yet, but it is a tablet that has always fascinated me.

That night Khat hosted a dinner to welcome Navid. She made a lovely fesenjoon and a Thai green fish curry (which was spicy). We had great company and conversation - which ranged from how jumbo jets stay up in the air and why the Titanic sunk to...well, actually, that was the highlight conversation of the night :D But, really, the night was fantastic, and I haven't laughed so hard in a long time. Navid and Roya looked like they were doing lovely - pilgrimage suits them ;). I'll try to get some photos from the many photographers last night. I have some hilarious ones of Navid.

I walked home last night to the beats of missy elliot. And as I walked down the thousand or so stairs in rhythmic steps and patterns - Navid had let me borrow his ipod; Navid LOVES missy - one quote of Baha'u'llah kept coming back into my mind - it soon replaced the music I was listening to, and I realized that I was actually stepping in time to the melody with which I was repeating the quote:

Be generous in prosperity, and thankful in adversity. Be worthy of the trust of thy neighbor, and look upon him with a bright and friendly face. Be a treasure to the poor, an admonisher to the rich, an answerer of the cry of the needy, a preserver of the sanctity of thy pledge. Be fair in thy judgment, and guarded in thy speech. Be unjust to no man, and show all meekness to all men. Be as a lamp unto them that walk in darkness, a joy to the sorrowful, a sea for the thirsty, a haven for the distressed, an upholder and defender of the victim of oppression. Let integrity and uprightness distinguish all thine acts. Be a home for the stranger, a balm to the suffering, a tower of strength for the fugitive. Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light unto the feet of the erring. Be an ornament to the countenance of truth, a crown to the brow of fidelity, a pillar of the temple of righteousness, a breath of life to the body of mankind, an ensign of the hosts of justice, a luminary above the horizon of virtue, a dew to the soil of the human heart, an ark on the ocean of knowledge, a sun in the heaven of bounty, a gem on the diadem of wisdom, a shining light in the firmament of thy generation, a fruit upon the tree of humility.
(Baha'u'llah, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 283)

This is how we should live - this is how we should address every situation and every person. It seems a tall order, I mean, well, it is a lofty station - but I think if we concentrate on fulfilling each one seperately it is easy to get lost and to possibly let one slip. I think each and all can be accomplished with being self-effacing, sacrificial, and loving - This seems to be the collective root from which all seem to stem from.

***************************************************************************

And it is also time to unveil the winners of the contest I posted a few weeks ago. And first prize is...........a tie! Roya and Sholeh come on down! Actually, there was no right answer per se, but their's seemed the most plausible. All the rest of the participants will be receiving something soon. Roya and Sholeh, get ready for your icecream bar! Watch out for IOM.