Why is it raining?

In the eyes of a 4 year old :-)


Today it was raining on and off. Conversation with Baby.

S: Why is it raining ah?

B: Because God is bathing
. 
(then rain stopped and then started again)

S: Now rain again, God bathing again?

B: Ya. He tired already, play a lot. Sweat ady, need to bath again.

Rain stop and started again.

S: God bathing again? Why God need to bath so many times?

B: No la... Now its Baha'u'llah, Abdul-Baha, Shoghi Effendi, My pati, my another pati, your 
appa, your pati. 

S: then your appa?

B: My appa not yet die la.... He still in the kampung la... how he can bath?

S: Why got lightning and thunder?

B: Because God is shouting. 

S: Why God is shouting?

B: I don't know

Explained to her about God speaking gently so how can God be shouting?

B: then i don't know la.. (And she changed topic)

Living heart of community

Today, i suddenly remember what took place earlier this year when i pass by a school.

In March 2011, sudden flash floods caused many people to evacuate their homes in Melaka. At that time, i was passing by a school that linked 2 large areas. We used to distinguished this area and that as separate.
But when i saw how the school transformed from just being an institution of education to a place where friendships, love, kindness are shown, it just come to me that school is like the living heart of a community where interactions take place not just for education but also in times of need provides shelter and also a place where the nobility of men is clearly shown.

O SON OF BEING! Thy Paradise is My love; thy heavenly home, reunion with Me. Enter therein and tarry not. This is that which hath been destined for thee in Our kingdom above and Our exalted dominion.

Whatever you focus on will expand

A Sioux Indian Story

Author unknown

My grandfather took me to the fish pond on the farm when I was about seven, and he told me to throw a stone into the water. He told me to watch the circles created by the stone. Then he asked me to think of myself as that stone person.

"You may create lots of splashes in your life but the waves that come from those splashes will disturb the peace of all your fellow creatures," he said.

"Remember that you are responsible for what you put in your circle and that circle will also touch many other circles. You will need to live in a way that allows the good that comes from your circle to send the peace of that goodness to others. The splash that comes from anger or jealousy will send those feelings to other circles. You are responsible for both."

That was the first time I realized each person creates the inner peace or discord that flows out into the world. We cannot create world peace if we are riddled with inner conflict, hatred, doubt, or anger. We radiate the feelings and thoughts that we hold inside, whether we speak them or not. Whatever is splashing around inside of us is spilling out into the world, creating beauty or discord with all other circles of life.

Remember the eternal wisdom: Whatever you focus on expands.

Oh, the Places You'll Go! by Dr. Seuss

Congratulations!

Today is your day.

You're off to Great Places!

You're off and away!

You have brains in your head.

You have feet in your shoes

You can steer yourself

any direction you choose.

You're on your own. And you know what you know.

And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

You'll look up and down streets. Look 'em over with care.

About some you will say, "I don't choose to go there."

With your head full of brains and your shoes full of feet,

you're too smart to go down any not-so-good street.

And you may not find any

you'll want to go down.

In that case, of course,

you'll head straight out of town.

It's opener there

in the wide open air.

Out there things can happen

and frequently do

to people as brainy

and footsy as you.

And when things start to happen,

don't worry. Don't stew.

Just go right along.

You'll start happening too.

OH! THE PLACES YOU'LL GO!

You'll be on your way up!

You'll be seeing great sights!

You'll join the high fliers

who soar to high heights.

You won't lag behind, because you'll have the speed.

You'll pass the whole gang and you'll soon take the lead.

Wherever you fly, you'll be the best of the best.

Wherever you go, you will top all the rest.

Except when you don't

Because, sometimes, you won't.

I'm sorry to say so

but, sadly, it's true

and Hang-ups

can happen to you.

You can get all hung up

in a prickle-ly perch.

And your gang will fly on.

You'll be left in a Lurch.

You'll come down from the Lurch

with an unpleasant bump.

And the chances are, then,

that you'll be in a Slump.

And when you're in a Slump,

you're not in for much fun.

Un-slumping yourself

is not easily done.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.

Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're darked.

A place you could sprain both your elbow and chin!

Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?

How much can you lose? How much can you win?

And IF you go in, should you turn left or right...

or right-and-three-quarters? Or, maybe, not quite?

Or go around back and sneak in from behind?

Simple it's not, I'm afraid you will find,

for a mind-maker-upper to make up his mind.

You can get so confused

that you'll start in to race

down long wiggled roads at a break-necking pace

and grind on for miles across weirdish wild space,

headed, I fear, toward a most useless place.

The Waiting Place...

...for people just waiting.

Waiting for a train to go

or a bus to come, or a plane to go

or the mail to come, or the rain to go

or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow

or waiting around for a Yes or a No

or waiting for their hair to grow.

Everyone is just waiting.

Waiting for the fish to bite

or waiting for wind to fly a kite

or waiting around for Friday night

or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake

or a pot to boil, or a Better Break

or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants

or a wig with curls, or Another Chance.

Everyone is just waiting.

NO! That's not for you!

Somehow you'll escape

all that waiting and staying.

You'll find the bright places

where Boom Bands are playing.

With banner flip-flapping,

once more you'll ride high!

Ready for anything under the sky.

Ready because you're that kind of a guy!

Oh, the places you'll go! There is fun to be done!

There are points to be scored. there are games to be won.

And the magical things you can do with that ball

will make you the winning-est winner of all.

Fame! You'll be famous as famous can be,

with the whole wide world watching you win on TV.

Except when they don't.

Because, sometimes, they won't.

I'm afraid that some times

you'll play lonely games too.

Games you can't win

'cause you'll play against you.

All Alone!

Whether you like it or not,

Alone will be something

you'll be quite a lot.

And when you're alone, there's a very good chance

you'll meet things that scare you right out of your pants.

There are some, down the road between hither and yon,

that can scare you so much you won't want to go on.

But on you will go

though the weather be foul

On you will go

though your enemies prowl

On you will go

though the Hakken-Kraks howl

Onward up many

a frightening creek,

though your arms may get sore

and your sneakers may leak.

On and on you will hike

and I know you'll hike far

and face up to your problems

whatever they are.

You'll get mixed up, of course,

as you already know.

You'll get mixed up

with many strange birds as you go.

So be sure when you step.

Step with care and great tact

and remember that Life's

a Great Balancing Act.

Just never forget to be dexterous and deft.

And never mix up your right foot with your left.

And will you succeed?

Yes! You will, indeed!

(98 and 3/4 percent guaranteed.)

KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!

So...

be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray

or Mordecai Ali Van Allen O'Shea,

you're off to Great Places!

Today is your day!

Your mountain is waiting.

So...get on your way!

Children see, Children Do!

Character Training

The thing of paramount importance in education is character training. With regard to this, example is more effective than precept, and the lives and characters of the child’s parents, teachers and habitual associates are factors of the utmost importance.

The Prophets of God are the great educators of mankind, and Their counsels and the story of Their lives should be instilled into the child’s mind as soon as it is able to grasp them. Especially important are the words of the Supreme Teacher, Bahá’u’lláh, Who reveals the root principles on which the civilization of the future must be built up. He says:—

" Teach your children what hath been revealed through the Pen of Glory. Instruct them in what hath descended from the heaven of greatness and power. Let them memorize the Tablets of the Merciful and chant them with the most melodious voices in the halls of the Mashriqu’l-Adhkár"

Patience :-)

 A conversation between a 17 year old and a 4 year old. The 4 year old gal was showing her temper and shouting and then the 17 year old brought her aside to have a counseling session and the conversation below took place.

SF: Where is your virtue of patience?
Baby: went to heaven.
SF: do you know where is heaven?
Baby: yes. Up.
SF: Where is up? how come i cannot see?
Baby: Up la (showing her hand up). You cannot see because its block by the white white things.

 Verily I seek patience only in God, and Him do I regard as the goal of My desire. 

This signifieth that I have the undoubted Truth on My side.

~  the Báb ~

 

FAITH!

Faith is the magnet which draws the confirmation of the Merciful One. Service is the magnet which attracts the heavenly strength. I hope thou wilt attain both.

How can one increase in faith?

You must strive. A child does not know, in learning he obtains knowledge. search for Truth.

There are three kinds of Faith: first, that which is from tradition and birth. For example: a child is born of Muḥammadan parents, he is a Muḥammadan.Thisfaith is weak traditional faith: second, that which comes from Knowledge, and is the faith of understanding. This is good, but there is a better, the faith of practice. This is real faith.

We hear there is an invention, we believe it is good; then we come and see it. We hear that there is wealth, we see it; we work hard for it, and become rich ourselves and so help others. We know and we see the Light, we go close to it, are warmed by it, and reflect its rays on others; this is real faith, and thus we receive power to become the eternal sons of God. ~ Abdu'l-Bahá

CONTENTMENT!

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

" O QUINTESSENCE OF PASSION! Put away all covetousness and seek contentment; for the covetous hath ever been deprived, and the contented hath ever been loved and praised."

~Baha'u'llah ~

Today, Su Hui was asked what does she understand by contentment. She was given an example that contentment means asking for many things. 

She then said, no, that's not the meaning. What i understand contentment as is, it means when mummy buy me one new pair of clothes, i am happy and i won't ask her to buy a second or third pair. That is contentment.

Ed: As i was listening to this, i was wondering such simple explanation of what is contentment and we, adults cannot understand it fully and still striving to define it. 

Words of Wisdom

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.

To the teachers in my life!

"Blessed is that teacher who shall arise to instruct the children, and to guide the people into the pathways of God, the Bestower, the Well-Beloved."

~ Baha'u'llah ~

From A School Principal’s speech at a graduation..

He said “Doctor wants his child to become a doctor………
Engineer wants his child to become engineer……
Businessman wants his ward to become CEO…..
BUT a teacher also wants his child to become one of them..!!!!
Nobody wants to become a teacher BY CHOICE” ….Very sad but that’s the truth…..!!!

The dinner guests were sitting around the table discussing life.
One man, a CEO, decided to explain the problem with education. He argued,
“What’s a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?”

To stress his point he said to another guest;
“You’re a teacher, Bonnie. Be honest. What do you make?”

Teacher Bonnie, who had a reputation for honesty and frankness replied,
“You want to know what I make?
(She paused for a second, then began…)

“Well, I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could.

I make a C+ feel like the Congressional Medal of Honor winner.

I make kids sit through 40 minutes of class time when their parents can’t
make them sit for 5 min. without an I Pod, Game Cube or movie rental.

You want to know what I make?
(She paused again and looked at each and every person at the table)

I make kids wonder.

I make them question.

I make them apologize and mean it.

I make them have respect and take responsibility for their actions.

I teach them how to write and then I make them write.
Keyboarding isn’t everything.

I make them read, read, read.

I make them show all their work in math.
They use their God given brain, not the man-made calculator.

I make my students from other countries learn everything they need
to know about English while preserving their unique cultural identity.

I make my classroom a place where all my students feel safe.

Finally, I make them understand that if they use the gifts they
were given, work hard, and follow their hearts, they can succeed in life

( Bonnie paused one last time and then continued.)

Then, when people try to judge me by what I make, with me knowing money isn’t everything, I can hold my head up high and pay no attention because they are ignorant. You want to know what I make?

I MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN ALL YOUR LIVES,EDUCATING KIDS AND PREPARING THEM TO BECOME CEO’s ,AND DOCTORS AND ENGINEERS……….

What do you make Mr. CEO?

His jaw dropped; he went silent.

THIS IS WORTH SENDING TO EVERY TEACHER & CEO, EVERY PERSON YOU KNOW. Even all personal teachers like mother, father, brother, sister, coach and spiritual leader/teacher.

Love of a grandmother

"Comfort thy mother and endeavor to do what

is 

conducive to the happiness of her heart."

~ Abdu’l-Bahá

Today, during the devotional meeting themed Family, i was touched by 

how a grandmother touched by the prayers of Baha'u'llah was striving to 

keep up with the chants and was trying to find the prayers so that her 

grandchild can chant together with us. I felt this moment was really 

beautiful as it reminded me of my own grandmother who used to cut out 

newspaper articles to share with us the knowledge and interesting 

happenings in the world. but above all, i just felt engaged in devotional 

with loved ones especially on mother's day is spiritually uplifting and i 

couldn't think of a better way to thank our mothers other than to offer 

them prayers for their progress. 

Seeking Happiness!

"Happiness consists of two kinds; physical and spiritual. The physical happiness is limited; its utmost duration is one day, one month, one year. It hath no result. Spiritual happiness is eternal and unfathomable. This kind of happiness appeareth in one’s soul with the love of God and suffereth one to attain to the virtues and perfections of the world of humanity. Therefore, endeavor as much as thou art able in order to illumine the lamp of thy heart by the light of love."

~ Abdul-Baha ~

This story is about a beautiful, expensively dressed lady who complained to her psychiatrist that she felt that her whole life was empty, it had no meaning.

So, the lady went to visit a counselor to seek out happiness. 

The counselor called over the old lady who cleaned the office floors. 

The counselor then said to the rich lady"I'm going to ask Mary here

to tell you how she found happiness. All I want you to do is listen to her."

So the old lady put down her broom and sat on a chair and told her story:

"Well, my husband died of malaria and three months later 

my only son was killed by a car. 

I had nobody... I had nothing left. I couldn't sleep, I couldn't eat,

I never smiled at anyone, I even thought of taking my own life.

Then one evening a little kitten followed me home from work.

Somehow I felt sorry for that kitten. It was cold outside, so I decided

to let the kitten in. I got it some milk, and the kitten licked the plate clean.

Then it purred and rubbed against my leg and for the first time in months,

I smiled. 

Then I stopped to think, if helping a little kitten could make me smile,

maybe doing something for people could make me happy. 

So the next day I baked some biscuits and took them to a neighbor

who was sick in bed. 

Every day I tried to do something nice for someone. 

It made me so happy to see them happy.  

Today, I don't know of anybody who sleeps and eats 

better than I do. 

I've found happiness, by giving it to others."

When she heard that the rich lady cried. 

She had everything that money could buy, but

she had lost the things which money cannot buy.

Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. 

Happiness is the spiritual experience of living 

every minute with love, grace and gratitude

The presence of Altruism

Today, when i received this email about this group. I remembered what was said by Universal House of Justice about this group:

"...seeing in junior youth altruism, an acute sense of justice, eagerness to learn about the universe and the desire to contribute to the construction of a better world."

Enjoy the story as i did. And may it inspire us all to serve our community better and vigorously.

Dear friends,


I'd like to share a service project done by a junior youth group I visited recently. In the consultation about how they can contribute to their neighbourhood, they said that there were quite a few of their friends who had their bicycles stolen. In fact, one of the group members also had his bicycle stolen recently. So they decided that they wanted to give their friends (who had their bikes stolen) bicycles.

As the animator continued the consultation, they were coming out with ideas on how to carry this project to fruition. One of them said that they can go to the bicycle shop and ask for an old, broken bike that they can fix up and perhaps present to their friends.

They visited the bicycle shop yesterday and the uncle said he can sell them one of the old bikes for RM45 (it needed a little repair work done). After that they were discussing with the animator about how they would come up with the money in one week's time. Without hesitation, one of them said "I can save RM5 a day, and by the end of the week, I will have RM25" and another said he can save RM2 a day. When the animator asked them how they would buy lunch at school if they gave all their money for this project, and they just said "It's ok, this is more important".

The animator and I were very touched by their kind hearts and willingness to sacrifice. However, we felt that they shouldn't have to bear the cost of the project all on their own.
Also, the animator felt that it's better for them to put forth some effort in repairing the bicycle, rather than just pay money for a finished product, they agreed. We then discussed about what to tell the bicycle uncle regarding their intention to help in the repair and one of the junior youth volunteered to be the one to speak to him. I then ask the animator to call him immediately. The junior youth was shocked and a bit afraid but we encouraged him. We put the call on the speaker-mode so everyone can listen. He was so cute when speaking to the uncle, but to our slight disappointment, the uncle said the bicycle was fixed yesterday.

So, today I asked them to come up with a few ideas on how to raise the money. One said car wash, another said his little 7 year old sister can sell sweets in school (apparently, she can make between RM5 to RM10 profit a day :-) ), I suggested they could clean their neighbours' homes for a small fee, another suggested selling unused items from their homes. I felt that the ideas to raise money should be a group effort rather than just the effort of their little sister's. So we took a vote on which project to do. They decided on the home cleaning service. We then consulted on what tools we would need and what kind of service we'd like to provide and how much to charge. They then rehearsed the script about how they were going to introduced themselves and what their service project was for.

We decided to carry it out immediately and one of them even said we have to because we need the money by next Saturday. The animator said she have to leave because her family was visiting and she needed to clean the house. And that was how they got their first client of the day. They did a great job and after that we also reflected with them about what they learned and what they needed to improve on.

We then went for lunch and after that one of the junior youth's mother also said she'd like their services as she wanted to clean out the store room to make it a room for future junior youth gatherings.

Although the mother said she only wanted the store room cleaned, I asked the junior youth to also clean the living room and other parts. A lot of recyclable items were retrieved from the room and items for sale as well. The project will continue next week and the mother gave them RM30 for their service. So far, they've already raised RM40. They will need more than RM45 as they intend to give a few bicycles away and they need to buy some new tires and some may need simple repair work etc.

Friends, I feel truly blessed to witness such noble intentions put in action by the junior youth. This is such a beautiful example of the intrinsic altruism in this special age group of people.

Love,
Junior Youth Group observer.