doberman pizza. a baha'i (bahai, bahá'í) blog.

So apparently an Amtrak train derailed recently. I remember having misgivings about going Amtrak when I went to New York because I had heard so many stories like this. Sad. No one was killed, though. That’s probably because of the ample safety devices! Remove rubber push window!

Well, things seem to be looking up now. I may indeed have a job come September. We’ll see. I certainly hope so, anyway. I’ll keep you all posted. I’m taking off tonight to help draw a poster for the Festival des Rythmes du Monde. Later on I might work at setting up the festival and acting as security. Cool :) Any little experience helps, y’know.

I’m moving on Wednesday! I’m busy at home hauling things upstairs and putting them into boxes. The new place will be on the other side of downtown. Unfortunately it’ll be on a major thoroughfare, but hey, in a little town like this, it can’t be that bad. I hope.

If you’ve been praying for me, please continue said prayers as long as you can ;)

Had a group interview for Loblaws today. They’re opening a new supermarket in town. It was a pretty cool interview, actually; they made us play games and consult. I really liked it. I feel like I learned something too. fun!

Yay! I went to the doctor’s office yesterday and, lo and behold, she diagnosed a respiratory infection, and prescribed antibiotics. She also suggested I get a good cough syrup. Wow. Why didn’t I think of that? You know, I love Bahá’u'lláh. When He says you should seek the advice of a competent physician, He knows what He’s talking about. So, yeah. Things are much better now. I can breathe; just got paid for my work on the cranberry site; and I don’t look like Kramer.

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention I got a haircut today, too. My hair was getting a little bit long. I went to this basement hair salon I’ve never been to before and got a pretty good cut. The hairdresser was nice, and apparently her sister was the coordinator for the World Youth Day celebrations in the area. Neat! It’s amazing how many connections you can make when you just open up to people.

That World Youth Day celebration was really something else. The experience has stirred up all these ideas, opened up so many doors, and really widened my understanding of the relationship between the different religions. It’s all so clear, and so powerful! There is no difference between a Christian, a Muslim, a Buddhist, a Bahá’í. As long as they are true followers, as long as they cut through the veils imposed by the limitations of human expression, and reach out to grasp the essence of the spiritual teachings of the Manifestations of God — rather than being contented with the material elements of religion, which must needs change — they are the followers of the One True God. Throw aside the veils, O people, which stand between you and the Beloved! Ya Bahá’ul-’Abhá!

Wow I feel good. If you feel like this too, for goodness’s sake, email me and let’s go travel teach!

PS: “Ya Bahá’ul-’Abhá” means “O Thou Glory of the All-Glorious”. It’s referred to as the Greatest Name of God.

Hey, here’s something really interesting: a new hospital-drama show has started on Australian TV, and it has a Bahá’í character. Emergence from obscurity?

I can’t believe it. Someone’s made a Missile Command clone called “New York Defender” in which you blow up jumbo jets that are trying to smack into the World Trade Centre towers. How utterly tasteless. And yet… there’s always this feeling of amazement and disbelief that someone would actually think to do that. Which makes it funny. It appears that they have rip-offs of a whole bunch of games, too. Here’s a clone of Asteroids that has a can of bug spray instead of a ship and mosquitoes instead of asteroids. w00t!

Anyway, back to the point. I reserved a spot at the doctor’s office today. Hopefully he/she can determine exactly what I’ve got (probably a respiratory infection by now, whoops :P) and give me something to combat it. I am just so sick of coughing and blowing my nose and being tired. It’s got to stop!

I need to work on some reports for the Assembly. This month we’ve welcomed two separate groups of Bahá’í youth, and we should follow up on it, reflect on what hath transpired, yea verily. Man. I just had a Sherbrooke Youth Congress flashback. In fact, I need to do a lot of reflecting.

Hey, BTW, here’s an interesting tidbit: someone from the Cranberry Interpretation Centre called me and asked me if I wanted a job as a guide this fall. I told her yea verily!

(holds back oceans of tears)

Duncan Hanks, I miss you so much!!!

so, our community welcomed a bunch of youth on a travel-teaching trip today. It was my first time coordinating something like that on my own. Ok, so maybe “coordinated” is too strong a word. ;)

No, seriously though, it turned out quite well. We had a deepening meeting on Saturday afternoon with several of the members of our community, on Bahá’í laws and the Kitáb-i-Aqdas (Most Holy Book). Afterwards, surprise surprise, we went across Victoriaville to participate in the World Youth Day celebrations. It was a trip. And I mean that in the sense of it being far out. And I mean that in the sense of it being wacky, wild, freaky, cool. Man. Slang is such a drag.

We started out by joining up with the corn-on-the-cob dinner on top of Mont Arthabaska, where we met a bunch of the pilgrims and locals and had time to chat and get to know each other. When it was over there was a performance by a Christian dance/song group straight from France. It actually was pretty good. Think Wildfire Dance Theatre, but in french, and Christian, with less specific emphasis on social issues and more on personal spiritual issues. I bought the CD. To finish the night, we joined all the folks who were doing a prayer march down the mountain carrying candles and torches. All in all, very interesting. It was my first time interacting with large numbers of young Christians, seeing how they express their belief and their faith. It showed me a lot of things about my own Faith, and I’m still reflecting on it. One thing that came to me is just how important it is to follow the high standard that Bahá’ís are exhorted to follow. Actions speak far louder than words, and one thing you do can make a far greater impression than a hundred things you say. When we are asked to lead a chaste and holy life, it’s not only for our own good, but for the good of the whole world. We teach people through the way we live our life and through the example that we give. That’s not to say that we should stop at just that — the promotion of the Word of God is done in all possible ways — but it shows that this Faith is a part of our daily life, it affects the way we think, affects the way we act, affects the way we live. And no matter how far we think we can go, there’s always one step farther we really can go. That’s the magic of being human — we can do a lot more with God’s help than we may think we can.

Anyway, the only drawback for me this weekend was my ill health. I’m still coughing and it doesn’t seem to be going away. I need to see a doctor pronto. Only problem is, I don’t have my health card yet. Maybe I should just pay the sixty bucks and get it over with. Being sick sucks big donkey butt.

What was I talking about? Oh yeah… back to that high standard of behaviour…

ASL-I-KULLU’L-KHAYR (Words of Wisdom)

In the Name of God, the Exalted, the Most High

The source of all good is trust in God, submission unto His command, and contentment with His holy will and pleasure.

The essence of wisdom is the fear of God, the dread of His scourge and punishment, and the apprehension of His justice and decree.

The essence of religion is to testify unto that which the Lord hath revealed, and follow that which He hath ordained in His mighty Book.

The source of all glory is acceptance of whatsoever the Lord hath bestowed, and contentment with that which God hath ordained.

The essence of love is for man to turn his heart to the Beloved One, and sever himself from all else but Him, and desire naught save that which is the desire of his Lord.

True remembrance is to make mention of the Lord, the All-Praised, and forget aught else beside Him.

True reliance is for the servant to pursue his profession and calling in this world, to hold fast unto the Lord, to seek naught but His grace, inasmuch as in His Hands is the destiny of all His servants.

The essence of detachment is for man to turn his face towards the courts of the Lord, to enter His Presence, behold His Countenance, and stand as witness before Him.

The essence of understanding is to testify to one’s poverty, and submit to the Will of the Lord, the Sovereign, the Gracious, the All-Powerful.

The source of courage and power is the promotion of the Word of God, and steadfastness in His Love.

The essence of charity is for the servant to recount the blessings of his Lord, and to render thanks unto Him at all times and under all conditions.

The essence of faith is fewness of words and abundance of deeds; he whose words exceed his deeds, know verily his death is better than his life.

The essence of true safety is to observe silence, to look at the end of things and to renounce the world.

The beginning of magnanimity is when man expendeth his wealth on himself, on his family and on the poor among his brethren in his Faith.

The essence of wealth is love for Me; whoso loveth Me is the possessor of all things, and he that loveth Me not is indeed of the poor and needy. This is that which the Finger of Glory and Splendour hath revealed.

The source of all evil is for man to turn away from his Lord and set his heart on things ungodly.

The most burning fire is to question the signs of God, to dispute idly that which He hath revealed, to deny Him and carry one’s self proudly before Him.

The source of all learning is the knowledge of God, exalted be His Glory, and this cannot be attained save through the knowledge of His Divine Manifestation.

The essence of abasement is to pass out from under the shadow of the Merciful and seek the shelter of the Evil One.

The source of error is to disbelieve in the One true God, rely upon aught else but Him, and flee from His Decree.

True loss is for him whose days have been spent in utter ignorance of his self.
The essence of all that We have revealed for thee is Justice, is for man to free himself from idle fancy and imitation, discern with the eye of oneness His glorious handiwork, and look into all things with a searching eye.

Thus have We instructed thee, manifested unto thee Words of Wisdom, that thou mayest be thankful unto the Lord, thy God, and glory therein amidst all peoples.

Bahá’u'lláh

Today (technically last night) is my three-month anniversary of living in Victoriaville. It’s been three months since the feast of Jamál (Beauty) when I set foot on this blessed piece of earth to stay. I look back on it now and I don’t regret it for a moment.

My AOL access ran out today, so I’m back to using email at the library. It’s not so bad now, because it’s about a five-minute walk there. When I move it’ll probably be about ten minutes. Exercise! Gotta love it. My bike has a flat, apparently. I’ll have to work that out with the person who I loaned it to. Bicycles are indispensible. They save on gas and money, they help you get exercise and keep you healthy, and so on and so forth. If someone knows a good way to exercise one’s arms and upper body, please email me and let me know. I have to work on my upper body strength. My legs are fine because I’ve walked and run and cycled so much in my life, but I don’t often work with my arms and the rest. And my abdomen, too.

Spiritually, life is okay. I am really enjoying taking Ruhi Book 3. Like all the books, it’s not only useful for learning skills of service, but also for changing your own perspective on spirituality. Perhaps accepting to take on the role of servant for the Cause teaches you how to live a better life — the spirit of service animates and gives life to divine civilization. If only more people understood that, right? That’s why it’s our duty to teach the Cause as well as serve. I am in the process of learning how to teach people about the Bahá’í Faith. At first I didn’t really know how or why it’s done. But it must be important since Bahá’u'lláh has prescribed it as a duty to each and every one of us, no? Start from that fact and learn how to reconcile it with your life, and then learn how to carry it out.

I’m also starting to realize that the more I think of myself as being here to “educate”, “teach”, or “enlighten” people about life, the more I cheat myself of the vital experience of learning about life, which I desperately need. Perhaps I can teach people lots of things. But no man, except the Manifestation of God, is only a teacher. All of us are learning and sharing our knowledge and wisdom as much as we can.

Another thing I’m learning is that unity is so important. So much more important than everything else. It doesn’t matter if the way we work is inefficient or crazy or wrong — the fundamental prerequisite for any successful action is unity. And if we are united and we turn our faces towards God, then He will guide us and the truth will be unveiled. Personal confrontations, pet peeves, prejudices, none of it matters. All of it will fall away before the face of God. Having trust in God and complete reliance on Him is our duty, and this is His bounty to us.

Anyway my hour is up soon. I’m glad I’m back from New York. I don’t think I’m cut out for life in the big city. This place is so beautiful and so appealing.

Today I got a photo from the study circle in Ruhi Book 1 that Elham and I tutored back in February-March of this year. What a nice reminder of such a great experience. The participants were Persian students from the Bahá’í Institute for Higher Education in Iran, the one that has weathered such severe attacks from the Iranian government recently. What a group of unforgettably friendly and spiritual people. It seems like the greatest thing about Bahá’ís is that no matter who you are or where you are in the world, if you can find a Bahá’í, then you’ve found a friend. Everyone should strive to attain that degree of selflessness and all-embracing love for humanity. Imagine the result!

ben, la journée est belle en tout cas. Je m’amuse à rééxaminer le site que j’ai construit pour les gens du Centre d’interprétation de la canneberge, pour y trouver des erreurs à corriger. Il n’y en a pas beaucoup. Si vous en trouvez, laissez-moi savoir!

J’ai reçu mes photos de mon voyage à New York. Ils sont pas mal bon, particulièrement ceux de Times Square. C’est vraiment une ville plein de couleur!

Eh ben, je repars à Montréal ce soir pour participer à un cercle d’étude Ruhi, le livre 3. C’est vraiment passionnant — c’est à propos de l’éducation spirituelle des enfants, et comment le faire. Ça me rappelle, je dois préparer une leçon pour ce soir. Et manger. Manger, c’est important. Et puis dormir. Dormir, c’est aussi important.

so hey, I came back on the Amtrak train from NYC yesterday, quite exhausted. I apparently had enough strength to go see the Canada Day fireworks at the Vieux-Port in Montreal, though. The train ride was amusing and harrowing enough, but I’ll spare you most of the details. Apparently Amtrak’s financial crisis, which could have threatened to leave us stranded in New York, has been averted for the time being. That would have been pretty amusing, in hindsight. Of course, if it did happen it would first appear as a colossal pain in the buttocks.

I’m taking one more day in Montreal to attend the Ruhi Book 3 circle at Amelia’s, and then returning to Victoriaville tomorrow night (hopefully). I’m starting to get homesick. Maybe travelling more, or doing some travel-teaching, would help me adjust to moving about.

Anyway, NYC was pretty cool. At first, the big city atmosphere was a bit shocking — the rank smell, the noise, and so on — but after a few days, I got over it and really started to like the place. Enough to consider going back. Perhaps with a more structured schedule, to visit more with the local Baha’is and get to know the character of the place better. Oh yeah, and Catherine, I didn’t go up the Empire State Building, although I did take lots of pictures of it. And to Hadi, I walked through Greenwich Village but didn’t stay very long. And what Haagen-Dazs outlet? I did go to this nice deli called Roxy’s Deli that had lots of pat-on-the-back we’re-so-great caricatures on the walls and that had very good cheesecake.

And I DIDN’T GET ROBBED OR MUGGED! ;)

And besides all that, the conference was pretty good too, and singing in Carnegie Hall was fantastic. Heck, now I’ve already made it in show business, and I’m not even in show business ;) Seriously though, it was a great first experience in choral singing. If singing is as rewarding as this then everyone should do it.