December 31, 2007

1 Sharaf 164 B.E. - Monday, December 31, 2007 about 12:48 PM PST

December 31 is when my Grandmother finished her New Year's house cleaning. Grandma was an interesting person, if she couldn't sleep she would get up in the middle of the night and clean house. Just before the beginning of a New Year she would do a mini house cleaning to get the house ready for the coming year.

On New Year's Day Grandma would make the beds and do dishes, but nothing else. All her laundry was finished on December 31, but on New Year's day she wouldn't do laundry. I don't care how many cloths we got dirty on New Year's Day she wouldn't do laundry until January 2.

On January 1 she fixed a big lunch with blackeyed peas, potatoes and gravy, creamed corn and some kind of pie. She did dishes on January 1 because that was part of cooking, but she didn't do much else. January 1 was devoted to visiting with family who came over on that day. Grandma enjoyed having family over on New Years Day.

Tomorrow I'm going to fix blackeyed peas and creamed corn, but I don't know what else. I have a chocolate bunt cake in the cupboard for desert so maybe I'll get ice cream to go with it when we go out. I have to pick Mom's meds up at 2:00 PM today. The pharmacy will be closed tomorrow so we have to get them today. While I'm out I'll get a filter for the central air unit, pigs feet and perhaps some ice cream.

One thing I'm going to change

I know one thing I'm going to change and that's how I deal with those nights that I can't sleep. They occur maybe once or twice a year. I get sleepy and go to bed, but then lay the tossing and turning. I hear noises outside the house and noises inside the house. I get up to check the thermostat or check the door, which I know I locked. Then go back to bed to continue to toss and turn. Finally I get to sleep about dawn and then I sleep through the alarm.

My grandmother would get up and clean house. I think that from now on I'll do the same or get online. It's cold this time of year, but I have enough cloths that I can layer them and keep warm, besides doing housework keeps you warm. I'm probably better off doing housework and keeping warm then getting online and freezing.

There's probably a lot of other things I need to change, but that one thing I know for sure I'm going to change. I just thought of other things I could do when I can't sleep. I can get my prayer book and say prayers or read a book. If I give myself enough time I can probably think of a few more things.

I am Prepared for January 1, 2008

19 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 29, 2007 about 7:57 PM PST

I am prepared for New Year's Day 2008. I have a package of blackeyed peas and a jalapeno peppers. My grandmother didn't put jalapenos in her blackeyed peas, but I do. Grandma made blackeyed peas with pigs feet and that was it. She didn't add much else to it. I didn't get any pigs feet when I went to the store today. I'll have to get them Sunday, when I go after the filter for the air conditioner.

My grandmother made a shopping list when she went to the store, so she didn't forget anything. She didn't get anything extra either. I don't make a shopping list so I forget some things and get extra stuff. It's not the extra items that are the problem, it's forgetting items you need. Actually I hadn't planned on putting pigs feet in the blackeyed peas. I have a can of beef in the cupboard that I intended to open and put a little in the slow cooker with the peas. However, in reviewing the idea, I think pigs feet would be better then canned beef.

My New Years dinner will be creamed corn, blackeyed peas, sweet potatoes, beef with rice and Taco seasoning and chocolate bunt cake. I think that's it for New Year's Day 2008, while January 1 isn't the New Year's Day I celebrate it's difficult to break some traditions. Grandma always had blackeyed peas on January 1, so I continue to make them on the first of January every year.

Memories of the Day after Christmas

15 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Wednesday, December 26, 2007 about 6:27 AM PST

December 26 the day after Christmas, the first day of Kwanzaa, either the first day of Christmas or the second day (depending on the tradition followed), and Boxing Day in Canada; for my Grandmother it was the day she began taking down the Christmas decorations. Some leave the Christmas decorations up until after New Year's Day, but my Grandma Newland always began taking them down on December 26.

The first thing to come down was the Christmas tree. For years Grandma would decorate a real fur tree. On Black Friday, Grandpa would take us Christmas tree shopping. He would buy a tree, take it home and then we would decorate it. On the day after Christmas, the tree came down and the decorations were stored in Grandma's walk in closet until next year.

Grandpa would take the tree out to the alley, put it in a large metal trashcan and burn it. There were no restrictions about burning trash like that at the time. After the tree completely burned, he put the ashes out using water. Then we began talking down the rest of the decorations in the house. Even after Grandma bought an artificial tree, one of the silver metal ones, she still took the decorations down on December 26.

After taking down and putting away the Christmas decorations, she began her New Year's preparations. This meant some house cleaning less then spring cleaning, but enough to make sure there were no stray pieces of popcorn strings in the living room. This is also when the baking began. Grandma made her pies ahead, then defrosted and warmed them on New Year's Day.

Christmas 2007

14 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Tuesday, December 25, 2007 about 11:20 AM PST

Santa Claus has come and gone to the houses where families celebrate Christmas. The Twelve Days of Christmas have begun for some. For others it will begin this evening at sunset. The first day of Christmas is either December 25 or 26 depending on the tradition and the twelfth day is either January 5 or 6. On January 6 Epiphany is celebrated; these are traditions of the western church. The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Christmas on January 7 and Epiphany on January 19.

The gift giving holidays I celebrate occurs at the end of February. I celebrate the days of Ayyam-i-Ha, which begin the evening of February 25 and end on the evening of March 1. Normally Ayyam-i-Ha covers four days, but 2008 is a leap year. That means there are five days in Ayyam-i-Ha. This is a time of gift giving and visiting before the beginning of the nineteen day fast on the evening of March 1. The end of the Fast is the Naw-Ruz, New Year, celebration.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do for Ayyam-i-Ha because I haven't thought that far ahead. I'll check the calendar and see. I know I'm going to write a poem, but I'm not sure of the theme yet. Perhaps I'll attend a poetry reading, Mom enjoys going to readings and reading her poems.

Birthday Memories

14 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Monday, December 24, 2007 about 6:12 PM PST

After 61 years I have a lot of birthday memories some good, some bad and some neutral. That's the way with birthdays and memories. One of the fondest memories I have isn't of my own birthday, but the birthdays of several of my classmates in grade school. Those students who had birthdays when school was in session were able to celebrate their birthday in class. No on received presents, but the entire class could eat ice cream and cake. We sang Happy Birthday and sometimes, depending on the teacher, played games.

My own birthday falls on the day before Christmas. I had birthday parties, but never on my birthday. I didn't mind that because it was fun celebrating without having to get my birthday present from under the Christmas Tree. Having a birthday party on a day besides Christmas Eve made my birthday special.

On Christmas Eve there was always a birthday cake and candles. My family celebrated my birthday. I opened my birthday presents and each of my three siblings got to open one of their Christmas presents. I never did understand that growing up, but I do now.

The one thing I miss having this year is a birthday cake. I didn't have a birthday cake. I received birthday greeting through e-mail. I had a friend, passed into the next world now, who sent me a birthday card ever year through snail mail. It's strange the things we miss as we get older. I love receiving greeting through e-mail. Still I miss the card that Marge always sent through the postal system.

My 60th Year is Coming to an End

13 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Sunday, December 23, 2007 about 7:52 PM PST

On December 24, somewhere between 11:45 PM and Midnight, I will turn 61. My 60th year hasn't been all that great. It's been stressful and test filled. I'm not sure how many of the tests I've past or failed. I'm going to have to look closely at what I've accomplished and didn't accomplish.

I didn't start out with specific goals. I worked my goals out during the year and I don't think that's the way to do them. I'm going to set some specific goals for my 61st year. I have a list of things to accomplish in my 6th decade. I also have a 101 Things to do in 1001 Days. Some of the items on my 6th decade list are on the 1001 Days lists.

One of the things on both list is to set a schedule and live by it for nineteen days. That's a short enough time to work with. The nice thing about a nineteen day schedule is you reevaluate it sooner then a thirty day schedule. I'm not sure how I'm going to do on it, but I'm going to try. If I don't achieve it the first time then I can start again the next Baha'i month.

I'm looking forward to my 61st year, I'm presuming it's going to be better then my 60th year. There is always hope, I do know that my faith is stronger now then twelve months ago. I still have issues, but I'm working them out.

Isn't the Internet Wonderful

11 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 22, 2007 about 10:31 AM PST

The Internet is absolutely wonderful. A person can find anything that they want to know from "How to Cook a Turkey in a Microwave" to the significance of the gifts mentioned in "The Twelve Days of Christmas". I was born on Christmas Eve and, according to my mother, missed being a Christmas baby by only a few minutes. Therefore the traditions surround Christmas have always fascinated me.

Recently I have researched song "The Twelve Days of Christmas", because I'm part of a writing challenge on writing.com that uses the song as inspiration for each of the twelve challenges. There is some disagreement about the historical accuracy of the spiritual or religious meaning of the song. However, that does not make the song and researching it any the less interesting.

There are several different web sites that give information on the song. I found one web page giving the spiritual significance of the song and when he twelve days are actually celebrated. As a child I heard the song and even sang it in Christmas pageants, but until recently did not know the possible religious significance to the gifts in it. I always thought it was about a man giving gifts to his girl. No one explained the spiritual or religious significance of the song and I always wondered why it was used in a religious pageant.

According to the web page The Twelve Days of Christmas, these days fall between Christmas and Epiphany. The twelve days fall between either between December 25 and January 4 or December 26 and January 6. In some traditions the first day begins on the evening of December 25. In addition, the "true love" mentioned in the song refers to the soul's beloved, who in the case of Christians is Christ. Even if the historical accuracy of the traditions is in despite, I find this information fascinating. It also explains why the song is used in so many religious Christmas pageants.

2008 is Coming

9 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Thursday, December 20, 2007 about 7:38 AM PST

2007 is almost over and 2008 is approaching. I don't celebrate New Years until Naw-Ruz, which fall on March 21. However, with my birthday on December 24 this is a good time to start considering the changes that have occurred in my life the past year.

On December 24, 2006 I turned sixty. On March 12, 2007 my mother went into the hospital. On March 19, 2007 Mom turned eighty-six years old in the operating room having a bowl resection. For the nine months from March 12 to November 12, I was under so much stress I felt like I was giving birth. The stress isn't gone, but I am putting everything in Baha'u'llah's hands and attempting to let go. Sometimes it seems like the situation is getting better and sometimes it appears just to have leveled off.

It's difficult for me to place everything in Baha'u'llah's hands and then stop worrying, but I'm working on it and achieving it sometimes. I think, that when one puts a situation on God's hands or the hands of one of his Reflections, such as Baha'u'llah or Christ, then you should stop worrying because the situation is taken care of. True there are things that one has to do, but those things can be figured out through prayer and meditation.

"He who puts his trust in God, God will suffice him;

He who fears God, God will send him relief."

Baha'u'llah

Why am I making a big deal about my birthday?

8 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Wednesday, December 19, 2007 about 2:48 PM PST

I'm not sure why I'm making such a big deal about my birthday. I've mentioned it in several entries on other blogs. Ever since last year, when I turned sixty, my birthday has suddenly became important to me. It could be that I'm getting older, it could be that I'm enjoying the day much better then I did as a child.

My mother tells me I was born a few minutes before midnight on December 24. If I had waited just a few more minutes I would be a Christmas baby. I'm not sure that would have made a lot of difference but it might. I know the one thing I resented as a child was my brothers and sister getting to open one of their Christmas presents when I opened my birthday present. I'm still dealing with that issues, but creatively in stories and poems. It's probably just as well I wasn't born on Christmas because I have enough issues with this time of year without making them any worse.

Actually there is a good plot for a story in this situation. A character resents being born on Christmas Eve so much that he or she goes back in time and somehow delays his or her birth until Christmas. All right, I'm a writer I can use almost any situation as a good plot or incident for a story. A situation like this would fit in a short story or novel rather than a piece of flash fiction. I feel better now that I've gotten the idea down, I'm not sure whether it was a good idea putting it in a blog or not, but there it is.

I still haven't decided why my birthday has become such a big deal. There was a time when it didn't matter if anyone remembered it. Now, however, I hope other family members besides my mother remembers it. It would be nice to receive a card through the mail or even an e-card from some of my family and friends. I could always send an e-card to myself, I have three e-mail addresses so that would be easy. That would also be a nice subject for a poem.

The Butterfly Emerges

7 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Tuesday, December 18, 2007 about 2:21 PM PST

All right this is fall and not the time of year when butterflies normally emerge from their cocoon. However, I'm coming out of my pupa case, I'm slowing becoming my true self, the person I'm meant to be.

For nine months, from March 12 to November 12, I was under so much stress I felt like I was giving birth. The stress hasn't entirely left, but I feel different. I feel more optimistic, I have more faith and I feel better about the decisions I've made in the past.

I still need to work on certain things. I still have a tendency to focus on the roadblocks placed in front of me instead of the path around them. However, I've found that whenever I push at (what I consider a roadblock) it either disappears all together or shrinks to a manageable size.

Everything in my life seems to being working out slowly. Sometimes I put a situation in Baha'u'llah's hands and then I attempt to take it back by worrying about it. However, thinking about the past few months and the blessing that Baha'u'llah has bestowed, I find that the things I worried about were taken care of and my prayers answered. Sometimes my prayers weren't answered in the way I thought they would be, but they were answered.

I've found I have a tendency to think a prayer isn't answered unless its answered the way I want it answered. This is a very selfish attitude and not in line with reality. Prayers are always answered. Sometimes they're answered with a yes, sometimes with a no, sometimes with a wait and usually in an unexpected way. So from now on I'm going to look for the answer rather then just presuming the answer is no.

Born in the Month of Questions

6 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Monday, December 17, 2007 about 12:55 PM PST

My birthday is on December 24 and, according to my mother, I was born just before midnight. This means that my birthday falls after sunset on the twenty-fourth, which makes it the fourteenth of Masa'il instead of the thirteenth. I'll have to look at my birth certificate to see the precise time, but I don't think that knowing exactly when I was born is all that important.

I was born in Blackwell, Oklahoma, on a Christmas Eve night and my mother spent Christmas in the hospital. I was my mother's Christmas present. Growing up my mother tried to do something special with me so that my birthday could be special. We celebrated Christmas at the time and having a Christmas Eve birthday wasn't a lot of fun.

All right, I do have issues about Christmas or perhaps I should say Christmas Eve because of my birthday. Christmas itself was interesting and sometimes fun. I remember trying to stay awake on Christmas Eve night to see Santa Claus. I remember leaving Christmas cookies and milk beside the tree for Santa Claus. I never did stay awake long enough to see either Santa or the Santa gifts found under the tree the next morning, but trying to stay awake was fun.

So getting back to my birthday on 14 Masa'il, I'm not sure what I'm going to do this year. I'd like to go out for prime rib, but that may be out of the question. I don't like to drive in Las Vegas on Christmas Eve because of the last minute Christmas shoppers. I also don't like to go to the mall on that day, all though I haven't been to a restaurant on Christmas Eve. I might like going to a restaurant on my birthday.

I've made several birthday wish lists. This year all I'm hoping for is some birthday cards. I haven't received any yet, but my birthday is still several days away. I don't know why I want someone to send me a birthday card this year, but I do. I'll put my wish list in the next post.

Short Days and Long Nights

5 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Sunday, December 16 about 4:39 PM PST

These short days and long nights are beginning to get to me. I used to get up at 4:00 AM when the alarm went off. Now I just lay in bed listening to the sounds the house makes early in the morning and watching for sunrise.

This morning I got up at 7:00 AM, but in the morning I have to be someplace between 8:00 and 8:30 AM so I'll have to get up earlier. There was a time when I liked fall and winter better the spring and summer, but not any more. I enjoy the warm weather more then the cold weather. I think winter is a time for children, they don't seem to notice the cold as much. Perhaps it's just that they have more stuff to do outside and don't get as cold.

I still enjoy the snow, but now I like being inside and watching it snow outside. As a child I enjoyed playing in the snow. I like making snow angels and snow people. Now I just enjoy watching kids make them. All though I think if I got the chance I'd attempt a snow angel again.

It's a Dismal Day in Las Vegas

2 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Thursday, December 13, 2007 about 10:18 AM PST

It's a dismal day in Las Vegas. The clouds are hiding the sun again today. This is Thankful Thursday in my Yahoo journal writing group. Today's prompt is to find ten things I am thankful for and post it to the group. So what ten things am I thankful for today.

1. Today I am thankful for the verse revealed by Baha'u'llah that says "be thankful in adversity and generous in prosperity".
2. Today I am thankful for the clouds that cover the sun and the blue sky because the make me appreciate the sunshine when it is visible again.
3. Today I am thankful for the white cranberry peach juice we have in the refrigerator.
4. Today I am thankful for the leftover coffee in the refrigerator, which I warm over in the microwave.
5. Today I am thankful for the copy of Prayers of Ecstasy lying by my computer. This little white book contains prayers and meditations revealed by Baha'u'llah or written by 'Abdu'l-Baha.
6. Today I am thankful for blogger automatically saving the entries to this blog as I compose them.
7. Today I am thankful for the story about the carrots, eggs and coffee bean, which someone read at the Feast of Masa'il. This is about tests and difficulties; it tells how different items react to the same stress of boiling water. The coffee bean rather than letting the stress change it changes its environment.
8. Today I am thankful for tears. Often we think that we shouldn't cry about something, but tears are cleansing. Once in a while, a good cry is good for both your eyes and your soul.
9. Today I am thankful for joy. The joy that comes with reading the verses revealed by Baha'u'llah.
10. Today I am thankful for autumn and winter. The chill of these two seasons makes the heat of spring and summer something to look forward to.

Driving to The Feast of Masa'il

1 Masa'il 164 B.E. - Wednesday, December 12, 2007 about 1:24 PM PST

I went to the Feast of Masa'il last night at the Baha'i Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. The Feast of Masa'il (Questions) started at 7:00 PM. Since I assisted in hosting the Feast my Mom and I arrived at about 6:00 PM. I drove west on Charleston almost all the way, but not all the way to Rainbow. I turned on south on Decatur and then west on Oakey.

The reason for that was the Christmas yard art that homeowners display along parts of Oakey. This time of year the yards and houses in residential neighborhoods are beautiful. Some of the houses have different colored lights around the windows and along the edges of their roofs. However, it's the decorations in the yards that are the most beautiful. There are light statues of reindeer, there are manger scenes and the trees are covered with lights.

That's the reason I took the route I did to the Baha'i Center. The decorations in the yards usually go up after Thanksgiving and taken down after December 25. I enjoy seeing the Christmas decorations in the yards. It brings back memories of my childhood and my grandparents. I usually write a poem every year about the Christmas yard decorations. I'm not sure what type of poem I'll write this year, but I think I'll write one about the yard art in my own neighborhood. There are two beautifully decorated yards close to me. Just down the street is one. I'm looking to writing about it this year.

It's Finally Autumn in Las Vegas

19 Qawl 164 B.E. - Tuesday, December 11, 2007 about 8:46 AM PST

It's fall in Las Vegas. The leaves are changing colors and dropping from the trees. The wind is blowing leaves across the streets and avenues. The wind is pushing the falling leaves under the wheels of passing cars.

One of my fondest childhood memories is autumn. In Oklahoma the first freeze of the year comes before December, usually around the first day of Autumn. After the freeze the leaves start to change. The cottonwood leaves turn yellow and the oak leaves turn orange. I haven't caught sight of any cottonwood trees, but there are oak trees all over the city. There are other trees, of course, but the oak leaves are the prettiest and the most memorable.

A lot of business plant oak trees on their property. I don't know the watering guide for oak trees. I don't know if the take a lot of water or a little water. I know the leaves are pretty when they change in the fall. I complain about the cold, but one of the blessing of cold weather is the changing leaves. If the it weren't for the first freeze in the fall the leaves wouldn't change and green leaves all year round doesn't allow variety. Variety is the spice of life or so the saying goes.

December Feast

17 Qawl 164 B.E. - Sunday, December 9, 2007 about 2:27 PM PST

There are two Feast in December, on the evening of Tuesday, December 11, is the Feast of Masa'il and at 7:30 PM on Sunday, December 30, is the Feast of Sharaf. I'm looking for ward to both of these Feast. I like attending Feast, but I'm not sure which portion is my favorite; sometimes the spiritual portion, sometimes the business portion, and sometimes the social portion.

The Feast of Masa'il on the 11th is at the Baha'i Center. I'm looking forward to both the Feast and the drive to the Center. The drive is especially beautiful this time of year because of all the houses that are decorated for Christmas. When I go to the Center I usually take Oakey and most of that street is residential. During the Christmas season the houses are decorated with all sorts of colored lights. Some of the yards have different Christmas theme light art in them.

I think I like looking at all the decorated yards because it brings back memories of my childhood. My grandfather used to take us driving through Blackwell around Christmas time to see all the yard and house decorations. The Christmas light art has become much or sophisticated since Grandpa Newland took us around Blackwell, but seeing the decorated yards brings back pleasant memories of my childhood. I'm going to enjoy driving to Feast on Tuesday.

Be Thankful in Adversity

16 Qawl 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 8, 2007 about 12:15 PM PST

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for December 7, 2007 - Write about Hard Times

Everyone has a different definition of individual hard times. Each individual goes through phases of hard times and good times. The one thing that is important during hard times is gratitude for what we have, for the little blessing that come on a daily basis. It's in hard times that we begin to understand what gratitude and happiness consist of.

Baha'u'llah tells us that we need to be thankful in adversity. It's in adversity that the blessing of God shine through. When everything is going good, sometimes we don't see the little blessing the make our daily life so enjoyable. It's only in adversity that these blessings become apparent.

Hard times or adversity can consist of anything from the wind knocking the electricity out for a couple of hours to the daily struggle to get enough to eat. Each individual throughout his or her life faces the full range of adversities (hard times) and must struggle to find happiness and gratitude in all phases of life. Happiness and thankfulness go hand-in-hand because one can't be happy without being grateful for it.

Ice Water on a Cold Day

16 Qawl 164 B.E. - Friday, December 7, 2007 about 6:56 PM PST

I like my water cold, even on a cold day I like cold water. If it's not cold I put ice cubes in it. It doesn't matter that cold water makes me shiver, I still want my water cold. I like to drink it either cold from the refrigerator or I want ice cubes in it.

Today the electricity went off. The wind kick the power all over the neighborhood. Now you would think that I'd be worried about the meat in the freezer or the left overs in fridge itself. Not me, I worried that the ice cubes would melt. Thinking about it, it sounds silly, but that's what I worried about. I didn't open the fridge doors because I didn't want anything to defrost or spoil.

The power didn't stay off very long. Nothing in the fridge or the freezer spoiled or defrosted. Tomorrow I think I'll make Hobo Stew or Soup with the leftover in the fridge. Then I'll check the leftover in the freezer to see how they are. The should be alright, but I'm going to have to use them up before Christmas or New Year's.

The leftovers in the freezer haven't been there very long, but I don't want them going into the New Year. My grandmother always made sure she fixed all her leftovers before New Year's Day. If we had turkey or ham leftover from Thanksgiving or Christmas, she always fixed it before New Year's Day. Then on New Year's day we'd have black eyed peas with either turkey or ham.

I think I picked up the habit of drinking ice water on a cold day from my grandmother. When we had water with our meals, we had ice water whether it was winter or summer. She always put a few ice cubes in glasses. Of course she always got her drinking water from the kitchen faucet, so perhaps the ice made the water taste better.

Another thing my grandmother always had at meal time was a prayer or blessing. She called it saying grace (that sounds like a good title for a poem). My grandfather always said the blessing when he eat with us, if he was at work when we eat then grandma said grace.

Good Morning World

14 Qawl 164 B.E. - Thursday, December 6, 2007 about 9:30 AM PST

It's a beautiful cloudy day in Las Vegas. I'm not sure how long this will last because earlier I saw blue sky peeking out. It's chilly, that's only a personal opinion, but it feels chilly to me. I can hear the neighbor's buzz saw going. He's cutting down the remainder of a tree that died a few months ago and he had the tops removed.

I'm going to have to have a couple of tree removed eventually. The roots are playing havoc with my driveway and I must do something with them. I think that's one of the things I'm going to put on my prayer list. I know prayers are answered because I've experienced answers; some in miraculous ways and others in just the ordinary events of life.

I'm going to go out this afternoon, so I'm going to have to check the weather report that comes to my e-mail box. I don't think it will rain, but you never know. I like the rain, but I don't like driving in it. However, we have to pick up some meds and other stuff today. Before leaving the garage I'll say a prayer of protection. Baha'u'llah revealed several beautiful protection prayers that can be said before leaving the house or in my case the garage.

My Birthday is Coming

14 Qawl 164 B.E. - Wednesday, December 5, 2007 about 8:24 PM PST

My birthday is on December 24. I seem to enjoy my birthday better now then I did when I was a child. Maybe it's because when I open presents now I can open them without my brothers or sister opening one of their Christmas presents. It could be that birthday's become more precious as you get older, approach sunset and the next world.

Christmas Eve birthday
the Christmas tree angel on
the top of my bookcase smiles.

I'm not sure what I'll do for this birthday. Maybe I'll stay home and read. I don't like driving on Christmas Eve because of the last minute Christmas shoppers and the traffic. I don't like going to stores on that day either, they're too crowded.

The Countdown to My Birthday

11 Qawl 164 B.E. - Sunday, December 2, 2007 about 6:38 PM PST

The count down has begun. There are about 22 days left until my birthday on December 24. The question is what do I want for my birthday. I think I would like to go out for prime rib. I want a king cut prime rib with raw horseradish's, a baked potato with sour cream and real butter, creamed spinach, a chef salad with blue cheese dressing. For desert I want chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and french vanilla ice cream.

I have to admit that I would probably take part of the prime rib and baked potato home. I would eat the chef salad, spinach and cake in the restaurant. Just because I want a king cut prime rib dinner doesn't mean I can eat it all at once. Prime rib is one of those meats that taste good when it's warmed over, especially if you have raw horseradish. I can get two or three meals out of one king cut of prime rib.

Another Solar Day is Done

10 Qawl 164 B.E. - Saturday, December 1, 2007 about 5:38 PM PST

Another solar day is done
the setting sun transformed the clouds
from white to fiery orange
which faded into starless night.

The chilled autumn day
became a damp fall night;
the days too short and the nights too long
are filled with prayers
and composing poems to the dawn.

The Blessing of an Autumn Rain

8 Qawl 164 B.E. - Friday, November 30 about 11:47 AM PST

It's raining today
I can hear the patter-patter
of raindrops on my cement driveway.

I can feel the chill of winter
when I step out my front door
and when I look out my living room window
I can see the cloud covered sky.

This is a beautiful rainy fall day
when all you want to do is drink something hot
and eat something hot.

This isn't an ice cream day,
it's a hot chocolate, a mint tea or hazel nut coffee day;
it's the kind of day you want to wrap in a warm blanket,
with a steaming cup of hot chocolate
and the Tablets of the Lord of Host.

This is the type of day
you don't want to go out,
but you know you're going to have to brave the weather
to get the hot chocolate mix
you forgot to get
when you went to the store yesterday.

Cloudy Weather and Gratitude

7 Qawl 164 B.E. - Wednesday, November 28, 2007 about 6:03 PM PST

I enjoy the cloudy weather. It reminds me of tests and difficulties (I've had a lot of those lately), sometimes the problems hide the Beloved like the clouds hide the sun. The clouds aren't permanent any more then tests and difficulties last. Eventually a person passes the test and moves on.

I've found the best way to handle test and difficulties is gratitude. I try to look at the little things I have to be thankful for on a daily basis. I even have a gratitude journal. In fact for the next 1001 days I'm going to make daily entries into that journal. I've even given the journal a special name - 1001 Days of Praise and Gratitude. I list things I have to be thankful or grateful for that day.

One of the things I listed today was the cloudy weather. Today I am grateful for cloudy weather. The best way to handle a cloudy day, week or month is to remember that the sun will eventually become visible again.

Autumn in Las Vegas

5 Qawl 164 B.E. - Tuesday, November 27, 2007 about 7:18 AM PST

Autumn in Las Vegas is usually cool, but this year it seams to be colder then usually. That's just a personal opinion thought. I don't think the actual weather reports have backed me up. Still I think its colder. According to the weather the past few days were below normal, but before that I think the weather reports said normal or above normal.

It's clouding outside right now, which reflect my mood this morning. It could be just the time of year, of course. Fall and Winter are sad season, cloudy and dreary; sleepy seasons with nature resting up for Spring and Summer. My likes concerning seasons have changed over the past few years. Winter used to be my favorite season, there are still things about winter I like.

I like the winter constellations. Living in Las Vegas with all the light pollution I don't see a lot of them. Gas prices prevent me from driving too far out of town to look at the night sky. Maybe that is one reason I'm a bit sad, it's been five or six years since I've been far enough away from the city to sky.

There are a few stars you can see from Las Vegas, if I look directly above me sometimes I can catch a glimpse of a twinkling star. Also I can see Venus when she is either a morning or evening star. I sometimes catch sight of Mars or one of the other planets, but not often. To get a good view of the night sky I'd have to go a long way out of town and that may not be possible for sometime.

I think I'll put that on my prayer list. Ask to get out of town to see the night sky.

The Test and Difficulties of a Dial-up Internet connection

3 Qawl 164 B.E. - Sunday, November 25, 2007 about 3:55 PM PST

My Internet connection is especially difficult today. It keeps disconnecting while I'm in the middle of composing blog entries. Fortunately, blogger.com automatically saves you work every few minutes. Still it can become irritating, particularly when it does this every few seconds. I'm not exactly sure what the problem is today. It could be the weather here in Las Vegas, because it cloudy and damp, which could effect the phone lines. I don't know enough about things like that to say for sure what it is.

The problem taxes my patience and persistence. It's just another form of test and difficulties, I've had a lot of those in the past nine months. Saying prayers helps, with the patience and persistence part. When I say a prayer about test and difficulties then the Internet connection disconnecting doesn't seem to bother me as much. I think I'm going to start saying I'm going to say one of the prayers for assistance with test and difficulties revealed by Baha'u'llah before going on line from now on.

Midnight Prayer

2 Qawl 164 B.E. - Saturday, November 24, 2007 about 1:36 AM PST

In midnight's silence
the Seeker after truth kneels
her soul on its knees.

Supplicating God
to guide her to mercy's sea
and His kingdom of oneness.

Asking the Lord to
let her eyes see His light and
her ears hear His call.

Requesting the door
be opened so she could see
both His glory and beauty.

Note: This poem was inspired by the Midnight Prayer by 'Abdu'l-Baha.

Have a Happy and Joyful Thanksgiving

19 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Thursday, November 22, 2007 about 9:03 AM PST

I wish everyone a Happy and Joyous Thanksgiving,
I am thankful for everyone who reads this blog,
I am thankful that I don't have to cook turkey in a Microwave this year,
I am thankful for everyone who leaves a comment about my posts,
I am thankful for writing.com,
I am thankful for Google Adsense,
I am thankful for blogger.com,
I am thankful I have posted to all my blogs today or late last night,
I am thankful for having family in Henderson,
I am thankful that I'm going to become a great aunt again,
I am thankful that I get up early and can watch the sun rise.

Giving Thanks and the Price of Gas

18 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Tuesday, November 20, 2007 about 8:17 PM PST

All right at first glance, the price of gas is nothing to be thankful for. Today I bought $17.00 in gas for a little over $3.03 a gallon. My mother's co-pay on most (not all) of her medication is $3.00. I paid more for a gallon of gas then my mother pays for her meds.

However, today we picked up a Thanksgiving Basket, which included a turkey. The Thanksgiving food basket didn't cost us any cash. On the way home from getting the turkey and stuff, I saw the price of gas at another self-serve station. It was around $3.11 per gallon. I am thankful I bought the gas at the station I did because I paid less for the gas.

This has made me realize that no matter what the problem there is always something to be thankful for. True sometimes we have to look for it, but if we look hard enough we find something to give thanks for; this is the time of year when we look for things to give thanks for, but we need to look for thankful things all year round.

Pumpkin Pie

16 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Sunday, November 18, 2007 about 10:30 PM PST

Prayers on Thanksgiving Day,
Unity of family and friends,
Many religions gathered to sing
Praises to the Creator,
Knowledge of God and gratitude shared
Individual blessings expressed and
No one goes unsatisfied.

Prayers on Thanksgiving Day,
In the tabernacle of unity
Each person receives a piece of the pie.

Thanksgiving Thoughts

14 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Saturday, November 17, 2007 about 5:47 AM PST

Thursday, November 22, is Thanksgiving. It's also the nineteenth day Qudrat (Power) on Friday the month of Qawl (Speech) begins. Because Thanksgiving is so close I'm thinking of praise and gratitude. I have a gratitude journal that I try to make entries in at least once a week.

I normally make gratitude journal entries on Thursdays. I belong to a yahoo journal writing group and the Thursday exercise is called Thankful Thursday. Everyone lists ten things they are thankful for and posts either to the group or their blogs. This Thanksgiving I have a lot to be thankful for, but I want to do more then just list those things.

I think this year I'll write a Thanksgiving poem. I haven't written a poem about Thanksgiving in a couple of years. Maybe I'll try a form poem. I'm in a challenge on writing.com called Stretch You Style, each week the group is challenged to write a poem in a different form. This is the fifth week of the challenge so we've written five poems in five different forms.

Forms Used so Far in Stretch Your Style

1. Garland Cinquain
2. Cyhydedd Hir
3. Ottava Rima
4. Quatern
5. Trios-par-Huit

I'm not sure if I'll use one of those forms or research another for the Thanksgiving poem. If I use one of those forms, I'll use the Garland Cinqain or the Quatern.

Thanksgiving is coming

11 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Wednesday, November 14, 2007 about 9:23 AM PST

Thanksgiving is next week on November 22, which is also the first of Qawl. The Feast of Qawl held on November 23. On the 22nd a friend is having a Unity Feast at her home. On the 22nd Mom and I are gong to my nieces for Thanksgiving dinner.

I'm looking forward to that because it's been a long time since we had Thanksgiving dinner with family. The meal is scheduled for 3:00 PM, but I think we'll go earlier in the day. I'm planning on going in the morning about 9:00 AM. It's not that I don't get up earlier. I usually get up between 4:00 and 5:00 AM, it takes me a while to wake up and get going.

The Birth of Baha'u'llah, November 12, 1817

9 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Monday, November 12, 2007 about 10:23 AM PST



Baha'u'llah, a title which means the "Glory of God, was born on November 12, 1817 in the city of Tehran, Persia (now Iran). At birth he was given the name Husayn Ali and his father was Mirza Buzurg-i-Nuri. His father was a wealthy, a government minister and could trace his ancestry back to the dynasties of Persia's past.



Last night at the Baha'i Center in Las Vegas, Nevada we celebrated the Birth of Baha'u'llah. We celebrated with prayers, dancing (the youth performed for the community), singing and slide shows depicting the life of Baha'u'llah. This isn't a time of giving gift, but rather of prayer and praise.

There is a new website about Baha'u'llah. If you click on the title to this post you will be redirected to the site, The Life of Baha'u'llah.

Monday is Baha'u'llah's Birthday

6 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Friday, November 9, 2007

Monday is Baha'u'llah's Birthday. On Sunday evening after sunset a celebration of the event is planned for the Baha'i Center in Las Vegas. I'm not sure what is planned, but it ought to be fun. The celebration is held in the evening because the calendar followed by the Baha'is is a solar calendar. That means that the day begins at sunset on one day and ends at sunset on the next.

I've written a single stanza Octava Rima about commemorating Baha'u'llah's birth. I'm not sure yet if I'm going to add another stanza to it. I'd planned two stanza, but the second just wasn't working so I posted the first stanza in my port on writing.com. I'm in a poetry contest that gives forms of poems and then I write a poem following that form. The optional challenge was to take significant historical event and write about it.

The birth of Baha'u'llah was a significant historical even in my spiritual life and the spiritual life of many others across the planet. Baha'u'llah was born in the Persian province of Nur (light) at dawn on November 12, 1817.

Feast of Qudrat 164 B.E.

1 Qudrat 164 B.E. - Sunday, November 4, 2007 about 9:46 AM PST

I attended the Feast of Qudrat last night at the home of a friend. I always like attending Feast whether it is in some one's home or at the Baha'i Center. Qudrat, which means power, is the 13th month of the Baha'i Calendar.

The theme for last nights Feast was love. The readings chosen were from the writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha. They concerned the four types of love.

The Four Types of Love

The first type is the love from God to humanity. This type of love is the source of all the graces and attributes of God.

The second type is the love going from humanity to God. This is faith and it attracts the divine bounties.

The third type is God's love for the identity of God Himself.

The fourth type is the love of the individual human for another. This type of love exists between the souls of humanity.

An Interesting Eight Months

16 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Tuesday, October 30, 2007 about 9:58 PM PDT

It's been an interesting eight months. Alright, maybe interesting isn't the right word here. Stressful might be a better choice. My mother did her first load of laundry today since March. It actually wasn't a full load. It was two sheets, a pair of purple leg warmers, a pair of purple slacks and the bottoms to two pairs of shorty PJs. She put the cloths in the washer, then in the dryer and then folded them. She's well on her way to recovery.

I on the other hand feel as if I'm in labor. Of course, that's what the process of transformation is ... labor. It's giving birth to a new phase of life. That's how I feel, I suspect I'm on the verge of a new phase of my life. I'm excited and a bit nervous because I don't know exactly what to expect.

On November 12/13 it will be exactly nine months since I took Mom to the hospital. On November 19 it will be exactly nine months since her bowl resection. My life has changed drastically in may ways. I'm more aware of the world around me. I'm more aware of how my reactions and emotions effect other people. I'm more aware of a lot of things. Yes, it's been an interesting and stressful eight months.

A New Week Begins

13 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Sunday, October 28, 2007 about 8:17 AM PDT

A new week begins and it looks like a week with a lot of ideas to blog about. October 31 is Halloween and Nevada Day. This is the last week of day light savings time for the year. November 1 NaNoWriMo begins and I have to finish planning this years' novel before that day. It should be too difficult though because all I have to do is put the events of each chapter in.

NaNoWriMo

I think one subject I'll use is writing a NaNoWriMo novel since I have 30 days to write 50,000 words that usually a transforming event. A person learns a lot about themselves attempting to write about 2,000 words a do, do laundry and house work. Not to mention going out all over town to get things done.

One thing I'm going to avoid doing during my novel writing time is laundry. My washer isn't level so if it's overloaded it moves (dances) all over the floor. In the spin cycles I have to stand next to it otherwise I have wrestle it back into position.

Feast of Qudrat

The Feast of Qudrat will occur on Saturday, November 3, I think that's another topic I'll blog about this week. Feast is always a transforming and spiritual experience. Other than the subjects I've mentioned I don't know what else I'll write about. I'm attempting to blog everyday so the more topics I come up with the better off I'll be.

Take The Internet Back

11 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Thursday, October 25, 2007 about 6:13 PM PDT

I added a new link to the sidebar and though I would write a little about it. I join Take The Internet Back because I liked their policy. Through this website I can read advertisements that are specifically directed to me. I don't get anything that I don't want.

I Enjoy Reading Ads now

I actually enjoy reading ads now because they are for products and services I'm interested in rather than stuff I don't want. It's nice to log into the website and read the e-mails. They also come to my intermind box so I can save those I want to take a second look at. I may not buy everything that is sent me, but I enjoy reading everything get from Take the Internet Back.

Free Downloads for Members

There are also free downloads for members. I've already downloaded one e-book about blogs. I'm reading through it slowly and learning a great deal about creating and publishing a blog.

Checking my links

9 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Wednesday, October 24, 2007 about 11:47 AM PDT

I'm going to check all the links I've posted and adding a few new ones. I'm not sure what some of the links have to do with transformation, but I'm going to figure it out. I'll post my thoughts on that with an explanation of each link and why I included it in this blog.

Links on the sidebar

Since I posted the theme to this blog, I've thought about the links I included on the sidebar. I'm speculating what they have to do with transformation. I'm not sure I'll remove any just yet, but I'll write what I think their association with transformation is. The reason for checking them is simple, my muse wants a vacation. She isn't coming up with entries the way she should. So I figure if I check the links and add some new ones, maybe she will get back to work.

My Muse Transforms

My muse is a shape changer. She transforms periodically into something else. I know that sounds rather odd, but it's true. I never know what guise my muse is going to use from one time to the other. That forces me to look at everything I see to find something to write about.

Sometimes my muse doesn't want to stick to the theme of the blog, which could be the problem this time. I'm not sure so I'm going to look at everything. I'll try some writing exercises that relate to transformation or spirituality.

Life is a Ditzy Internet Connection

8 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Tuesday, October 23, 2007 about 10:04 AM PDT

It's windy in Las Vegas and my phone connection to my Internet provider is acting up more than usual. I realized this morning that's how life is sometimes. There are moments in my life when I'm suddenly disconnected the the Source of faith and inspiration. In those moments my life falls apart.

Connecting to the Source

When I'm disconnected from the Source, the fault is mine. In times of disconnection I find that I allow material details to come between myself and God. In those time I need to reconnect and reconnect immediately with God. How do I reconnect? Through prayer and meditation.

The prayers and scriptures revealed by Baha'u'llah and the Bab are excellent reconnectors. I can sit down, read or recite a prayer and feel the presence of the Holy Spirit. I like to meditate and use the prayers of the Bab and Baha'u'llah during those times of disconnection. The reason is that I've found them the quickest way to become reconnect with the Source.

Transformation the Theme of this Blog

2 'Ilm 164 B.E. - Tuesday, October 16, 2007 about 10:35 PM PDT

'Ilm, a new month has begun, a new nineteen day period to achieve the writing goals, the financial goals and the spiritual goals I've set for myself. That brought to mind the theme of this blog transformation and the butterfly. The butterfly is the symbol of both the soul and transformation.

The Butterfly and Transformation

The butterfly emerges from its cocoon a completely different creature from the larva that entered the pupa case. The larva was a creature of the earth, eating leaves and other plants to survive. The butterfly is a creature of the air, eating nectar. In the pupa case the larva goes through the transformation that creates the butterfly. This process isn't easy for the larva, it's stressful and difficult, but it's necessary for the larva to become a butterfly.

It's the same way with the human soul. The soul is a creation of God. It has the ability to reflect the attributes of God, but it can't do this without going through test and difficulties that bring out those attributes and let the soul fly.

Mashiyyat Stressful

Mashiyyat was a stressful month. Whether it was more stressful than any month since Baha begin 164 B.E. I'm not sure. It could be that the accumulation of stress finally got to me and I broke out in stress (literally). Anyway I decided that I'm going to do something about it and get the major problems solved that are causing the biggest stresses.

One thing I'm doing is setting aside specific times morning, afternoon and evening for prayer and meditation. I thought back to the period before all this stress started and realized that I no longer had specific time periods for prayer. I've usually gotten the obligatory prayer said, but I usually had to work it in my daily life instead of living my daily life so that I didn't have to "work it in". I've set A, B, and C priorities. The A priorities are spiritual and the other important goals are B priorities.

A World Citizen and the Environment

19 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Monday, October 15, 2007 about 4:35 PM PDT

I consider myself a world citizen and as a citizen of Earth, I have a duty toward the planet of my birth. As a world citizen I ask myself "What can I do to help the environment?" The answer isn't an easy one especially since my financial resources are limited and there for limit my options in making my home environmentally friendly. There are some things that I can do immediately such as recycling. I'm not just talking about taking the recyclable containers out to the curb every other Saturday for the trash trucks to pick up. There are other things I can do to help the environment.

1. I can carry a trash bag in my car and put any trash I have in it, instead of throwing it into the street. This helps the environment by preventing the storm drains from becoming clogged and causing the street to flood when it rains.
2. I can pick up any aluminum cans I see on the street and put them in my trunk. This helps in two ways (1) by getting the trash off the street and (2) I can put the aluminum can with others and sell it for gas money or money to donate to charity.
3. I can join groups like FreeCycle and offer stuff I don't use, but is still good to others who can use it.
4. Instead of throwing worn cloths away immediately, I can use them as cleaning rags. This not only saves me money, but it gives more then one use to the item of clothing. I remember my grandmother taking worn out underwear, washing it and then using it to clean the toilet stool and shower before throwing it out (after she let it dry of course).
5. I can either ask for paper when I go to the grocery store or I can recycle the plastic grocery bags by giving them to churches and charities that collect and give food to seniors on fixed incomes or the homeless.
6. I can clean out my cupboards and donate any dishes that I don't use, but are still in good condition to charities that fix hot meals to the homeless.
7. I can make my landscape fit the ecosystem I live in. Las Vegas is a desert so I can use desert landscaping in my yard.
8. I can make sure that the technological equipment I buy is environmentally friendly because it uses less electricity.
9. I can dispose of any technological equipment that no longer works by taking it someplace that recycles or disposes of the parts safely. At this point the only piece of technological equipment I have that doesn't work is my mouse. My computer mouse finally died and now I have to find a way of disposing of it in a way that's safe for the environment.

Solved the Mouse Problem

I've solved the mouse problem, at least temperarly. I think I'm going to have to either get a new mouse or move the one I have to a coffee stand so that the cord doesn't get tangled. I think that's the problem with the mouse, the cord gets tangled and the signals don't go through. Of course, moving the mouse, so that the cord remains straight, is only a temporary fix. I think I'll eventually have to get a new mouse.

Right now though I can use the mousekeys to move the pointer, click and drop and drag (I haven't tried this yet). Moving the mouse pointer with the key on the key pad isn't too bad. It's slow and I can't use the keys for numbers without extra key strokes. I'll use the number on the top of the regular keyboard. I usually use those number anyway so it isn't a big change. I've printed out all the instructions for using the keypad so their in front of me (just in case my short term memory decides to take a vacation on this).

Using the numbered keypad may be a good exercise in patience. It's great to solve a problem without help. I feel like I could solve any problem that confronts me. This was an interesting test, even if it was caused by a technological component rather than a spiritual component. I still haven't decided whether to remove the pass word from my log in and just let the computer start up without it. I don't suppose that's a good idea. I'll have to see how things go in the next few day before I know for sure.

It's not like there is anyone in the house I can't trust. The only other person here is Mom. I'm was going to set her up with a password to this machine so that she could use it to check her bank account. Her compute has the software to connect to the Internet it just doesn't have a long enough telephone cord.

Having a Few Mouse Problems

17 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Friday, October 12, 2007 about 9:02 PM PDT

I'm having a few mouse problems, not with the four legged type but with the computer mouse. It beeps and quits working. Which is a problem because I have to reboot the entire system after I figure out what the problem. The thing is I don't know why the mouse freezes up and won't work.

I've set the mouse keys so that I can use them when the numlock is off. That may fix the problem or part of it anyway. I don't know. I do know this is getting to be a pain. I never know when the mouse is going to freeze and the only warning I get is the beep. I turn the system off, I straighten the mouse cord out, I unplug the mouse and plug it back into the computer and hope it works. If it doesn't then I can't get back into the computer until the mouse works. I have my log in set to a password. If this keeps up I may have to discontinue the password until I get the problem solved or a new mouse.

I suppose now I'm going to have to start pricing mice as well as keyboards. Some of the keys stick periodically. I never know which key is going to stick until I find a letter missing in a word. That isn't a problem most of the time, still it could get irritating and the mouse situation isn't going to help. Maybe I'll go for a wireless mouse, I think my system will handle that. I'll have to check and see.

Oh well, that life one little thing after another. If you let them bother you then you're stressed. I guess the next the next piece of technology I get is a new mouse. I'll see if the mouse key solve part of the problem. My only question with the mouse keys is when I'm using them how do I high light and click onto item? That escapes me for the moment. I suppose the answer will come eventually and with a little research. Tonight however I'm going to do something else and worry about solving this problem tomorrow.

I know this whole situation with the mouse is a test. Tests assist in transformation and building faith. I just can't see how I can apply anything I learn solving the my mouse problems.

Blogging the Environment

13 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Monday, October 8, 2007 about 9:07 PM PDT



October 15, 2007 is Blog Action Day devoted to blogging about the environment. Write about it from a personal perspective or relate it to the subject of your blog. United action at the grass roots level will change the world. The individual blogger is at the grass root level of civilization and society.

I'm not sure just yet of the specific title of my entry on that day. It depends on the quote that I include in the post. I've blogged on several different topic most related to either my religion, spirituality, transformation or writing. My post will relate the environment to one of those topics. I'm going to make an entry in all four of my blogs that day concerning the environment. The entries will cover various topics from writing to spirituality and perhaps other subjects.

I'm looking forward to seeing what other bloggers have to say on the subject. I'm also looking forward to the results this will have on the world at large. This is an interesting experiment in action at the grass roots level a multitude of blogs covering the same subject.

6 Days left until Blog Action Day

Work Schedule

12 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Saturday, October 7, 2007 about 8:28 PM PDT

I'm going to have to set up specific time for Internet, writing and other work. I've tried getting everything in without a schedule and it isn't working. I can't seem to get everything in, I'm not worrying about getting everything done. If I just "keep plugging away" I'll eventually get the important stuff accomplished. It's not that I have a social life anyway. My social life lately has consisted in taking my mother to doctors appointments and Feasts. We (Mom and I) did go out to eat on Monday, but that's the first time we've been to a "sit down" restaurant in a long time.

This month my social life improves a bit. The Interfaith Forums 2007 starts on the evening of October 14, then on the evening of the 15th I'll go to feast. There is a holy day celebration on the evening of the 19th or is it the 20th, I don't have a calendar near me right now. The 20th is the Birth of the Bab, so I think the celebration is on the evening of the 19th. What else is going on in October?

On October 31 I celebrate joining writing.com, also that is Nevada Day and Halloween. I'm not sure that I'm going to be home that night. I usually don't stay home for "Tricker Treaters" because we never have a lot of them and I usually have candy left over. The last thing I need is more candy in this house. I've still got a box of candy in the refrigerator that I received back in April or was it May. Maybe we ought to finish that candy off in the next few day. I think I will get some Candy Corn, I always like those and Halloween is the only time I can find them.

November is NaNoWriMo, I'm planning the novel this month. I don't have a lot more to go only the scenes in the chapters. I have the main characters planned and the conflict figured out. I have to write one sentence about the scenes I want to put in, the first chapter scenes are figured out. I can't actually start writing the novel until November 1. The idea is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. The daily word count goal is 1,667 beginning the first of November.

As for the work schedule, I think I'll keep early morning and late evening for writing and surfing. The daylight hours for other chores and going out of the house; of course, there will be times when I can't write or surf at night because of commitments such as Feast, etc. This should work fairly well, especially if I expected interruptions and down time. As long as I keep a mental list of other things to do or a prayer book handy during the down time there won't be a big problem.

Autumn Inspirations

6 Mashiyyt 164 B.E. - Tuesday, October 2, 2007 about 8:57 AM PDT

Autumn and October bring a lot of memories for me. I grew up in Oklahoma where the change in season is spectacular. The leaves change color right after the first freeze and eventually begin to fall off the trees. This time of year generates poems and memories, but this year I don't have to worry about memories generating poems or stories.

In October the Interfaith Forums 2007 begin. I've written poems about them before, very long poems concerning the talks. This year I think I'll take a different approach and blog about the Forums. I think the best things about these panel discussion is the education they afford those who attend. The panelist present the beliefs of their own religions without belittling the religions of the other panelist or attendees.

Baha'u'llah in his writings encourages us to "associate with the followers of all religions" with an attitude of respect and love. That's why I like attending the forum discussions, because everyone there shows respect for the chosen faiths of others.

Baha'u'llah and the Baha'i scriptures are another source of inspiration. I've written several poems based on the history of the Baha'i faith and on the scriptures revealed by Baha'u'llah and the Bab. I've also written some poems based on the writings of 'Abdu'l-Baha. In fact, I'm working on a group of poems inspired by either the history or the writings. On October 20 is the anniversary of the Birth of the Bab.

There are other things occurring this month that inspire. On October 31 is the anniversary of my joining writing.com. I joined that writers' website in 2002, I find inspiration whenever I log onto their server. One of the intriguing things is the way they change the look of their page every year. This is October so the theme on the web page is Halloween, I don't think I've written a Halloween poem in a while. This is one of those holidays that brings back a lot of memories of Trick'r'Treating, Halloween Parties, and grade school events.

October is also sign-up month for NaNoWriMo. National Novel Writing Month is in November it last the entire month and the goal is to write a 50,000-word novel during the month. This month I'm outlining the novel I'm writing in November. The idea isn't whether you win or lose, but that you make a daily attempt. It is a good idea to set a daily word count goal because it's easier to make the 50,000 words if you know how much you have to write in a day. A person can go over the word count goal, of course, but if you set it and keep working you have a chance of completing the novel by the end of November.

Morning Coffee

I'm a coffee lover. I like my coffee in the morning. I also like finding new ways to enjoy coffee. One thing I've never considered putting in coffee is butter, but that's what they put in it in Ethiopia. It sounds delicious and I'm going to have to try it.

According to Marcus Samuelsson the coffee is roasted and then brewed. After it's brewed a dollop of spiced butter is added. I don't know where I can find coffee like this in Las Vegas, I know it's not on the menu of any coffee house I've ever been in. I might have to find a recipe for the spiced butter and make the coffee myself. I'll have to buy some Ethiopian coffee beans and grind them here at home. This is definitely a coffee I have to try.

An Abudance of Coffee Mugs

4 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Saturday, September 29, 2007 about 7:35 PM PDT

I am rich. I am wealthy. I have an abundance of coffee mugs. I have so many coffee mugs that my cupboards won't hold them all. So what happens, I picked up a box of kitchen stuff off freecycle the other day and there were coffee mugs in it as well. The difference here is that it is a matching set. The rest of my mugs aren't matching sets.

So what am I going to do? I'm going to keep the matching set and take the rest of the coffee mugs to the garage. I'll put them beside the Tupperware tumblers I took out today. I didn't say there were real glass water glasses and juice glasses in the box of kitchen stuff. The glasses were matching sets as well.

Now I have matching sets of coffee cups, water glasses and juice glasses. I can now get rid of the plastic tumblers and the mismatched coffee mugs. I'm not sure what I'll do with them yet. Probably offer them on freecycle and if no one wants them then I'll take them to a second hand shop or one of the local charities. Somebody must want them, they're still good it's just that I prefer to drink water, juice and soda out of real glass.

I grew up drinking water, juice and soda out of real glass. I like the taste of ice water in a glass instead of a plastic tumbler. The water feels colder in glass than in plastic. All right, so there probably isn't any real difference in the temperature. Any more than coffee tastes different in a set of matching cups than in mismatched mugs. That doesn't matter, it's the idea of drinking ice tea or water out of a glass. It's the idea of drinking coffee out of a matching set of cups.

Drinking coffee out of matching cups brings back memories of my childhood. My grandmother had matching coffee cups. She had real glass water and tea glasses, not crystal mind you but ordinary glass. When I was a child we drink out of them, they weren't just to look at they were to use.

My grandmother had two sets of dishes. She had a set that she used during the week and a "good" set that she used when we had "friends over", on holidays and on Sunday. I'm getting nostalgia, next I'll be talking about the "good old days", which by the way probably weren't all that great unless you were a kid and didn't have to worry about anything but playing.

Feast of Mashiyyat

1 Mashiyyat 164 B.E. - Thursday, September 27, 2007 about 10:55 AM PDT

I attended the Feast of Mashiyyat last night, this was the first of the decentralized feast we held in the an individuals home. The feast was spiritual and intriguing. It's been several years since I attended a nineteen day feast in someone's home. I volunteered to do the reading s for the feast on the evening of October 15 and I'll write more about this in a later entry.

Mashiyyat is looking to be a busy month. Today is Thankful Thursday in the yahoo journal writing group and I haven't considered what my Gratitude journal entry will be yet. On the first sign-ups for NaNoWriMo begin, I'm going to enter again this year, but rather than write a novel without a plan I'm planning. Planning for the novel begins on October 1 and NaNoWriMo begins on November 1. Also the firs of the Interfaith Forums 2007 is held in Mashiyyat (at the moment, I'm not sure what I did with the flyer so I'll have to find it before I post any more about the forums).

The Only thing I want to do

19 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Wednesday, September 26, 2007 about 3:50 PM PDT

After seven months of stress, tests and difficulties, I've come to one conclusion. There is only one thing I like to do and that is write. That is the reason I joined writing.com and that is the reason I have four blogs. However, I'm not sure anyone is reading any of my blogs. So for the next nineteen days (September 27 to October 15) I'm going to research and implement ways to increase my blog readership. I'm a writer and a writer without readers is like a song without someone to sing it.

I haven't had comments in this blog in a while, part of the reason could be my slip shod method of entries. I don't make entries for days at a time, that's changing. In fact, there is a lot of things going to change in my life, but I won't go into everything in this entry. I might or I might not in later entries. The focus of this blog is writing about transformation and the spiritual experience from a personal point of view. If anyone is reading this please leave a comment and let me know what you think.

A Good Book

16 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Sunday, September 23, 2007 about 9:27 AM PDT

It's amazing what you find when you open a book and leaf through it's pages. I found the book mark in one of my personal library books. I don't remember starting to read the book, but lately the stress level has raised to a rash so it's possible I started to read the book before March 12.

The book I found the marker in is The Purpose of Physical Reality: The Kingdom of Names by John S. Hatcher. This book suggest an answer to the question: Why did God ordain spiritual beings (humans/human soul) begin their lives in the physical world?

The book is divided into four (long) chapters. Chapter 1: The Search for Divine Justice in the Physical World. Chapter 2: The Baha'i Paradigm of Physical Reality. Chapter 3: A Guide to the Physical Classroom. Chapter 4: The Eternal Consequence of the Physical Experience. These chapters are further subdivided into sections. In the book Dr. Hatcher backs up his assertions with quotes from various scriptural and non-scriptural sources.

When it comes to reading this book, I think I'll just start at the beginning again, using the book mark to keep my place.

Hot Coffee on a Cold Morning

15 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Saturday, September 22, 2007 about 6:55 AM PDT

There is nothing like a hot cup of coffee on a cold morning or even a chilly morning. It feels cold to me especially after the rain last night. I didn't go to bed until after 1:00 AM, then I got up and turned the alarm off about 4:00 AM and then I sit down on the couch and dozed until about 6:30 AM. I said my morning prayer and made coffee. The coffee smells and tastes good even if I did make it myself.

It's cloudy outside so I expect it will rain again sometime today. That's all right though because I have plenty to do around the house. I didn't get the trash taken out this morning and the garbage trucks have already gone through the neighborhood. I heard them about 6:55 AM. Sometimes they don't pick up the trash until late morning or even afternoon, but this morning they're on the ball and getting it done.

I hadn't planned on taking the trash out anyway. The wind blew so hard yesterday that I didn't get it taken to the curb last night and I was up too late (or perhaps I should say early) to get it out this morning. That's all right, I'll get the trash out Wednesday. Next Saturday I have to be on the ball with the recyclables. I've just about gotten all of them out of the garage, one more load to the curb and my garage won't be backed up in recyclables. That will be one thing I've finally gotten caught up since March.

My mother's been in and out of the hospital since March 12. I'm still trying to catch work up that can only be done quickly and effectively by two people. Mom still can't do a lot of things, so I'm doing most of it, but eventually I'll get it caught up. Well almost everything anyway. I beginning to think there's no such thing as getting the laundry caught up or even completely done. The best that one can hope for with laundry is just to stay ahead of it.

My grandmother did laundry once a week. She washed cloths for herself, my grandfather and four grandchildren. Saturday was laundry day at my grandparents house. She washed the cloths and hung them on the line to dry. She didn't use an automatic dryer, even after automatic dryers came out she still hung her cloths on the line to dry. She did change from a wringer washer to an automatic washer, but she all ways hung her cloths on the line.

Hot coffee, cold or cool mornings and a silent house all ways bring out fond memories from my childhood. I'm not sure why that combination works so well, maybe now that I'm 60 and going on 61 the good memories are coming to the surface. Not that all the memories from ,my childhood are good. I have bad or unpleasant memories as well, but this morning the good memories are surfacing. Perhaps it's because I said my morning prayers, perhaps it's just that the weather reminds me of fall in Oklahoma, or perhaps its a combination.

Morning Prayer revealed by Baha'u'llah

I have wakened in Thy shelter, O my God, and it becometh him that seeketh that shelter to abide withing the Sanctuary of Thy protection and the Stronghold of Thy defense. Illumine my inner being, O my Lord, with the splendors of the Day-Spring of Thy Revelation, even as Thou didst illumine my outer being with the morning light of Thy favor.

Prayers and Meditations by Baha'u'llah, p. 250

Fall Approaches

14 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Friday, September 21, 2007 about 3:46 PM PDT

Fall approaches, the weather is getting cooler, the sky is covered with clouds and the wind is blower. I watch the wind moving the limbs of the stone pine trees in my front yard. I think of the upcoming events in my life. The next feast is on September 26, the Feast of Mashiyyat (Will). Then in October there is the Feast of 'Ilm (Knowledge) on October 16 and the Birth of the Bab (October 20). I celebrate joining writing.com on October 31.

November is NaNoWriMo and the idea is to write a 50,000 word novel between November 1 and November 30. Also in November are two Feast and three Holy Days. The Feast of Qudrat (Power) is on November 3 and the Feast of Qawl (Speech) on November 22, these feast are held in the evening because Baha'i follow a solar calendar and the day begins at sunset. The Holy Days are the Anniversary of the Birth of Baha'u'llah on November 12, the Day of the Covenant, November 26, and the Ascension of 'Abdul'l-Baha, November 28. At the Feast of Qawl I celebrate becoming a Baha'i.

It's Raining Now

14 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Thursday, September 20, 2007 about 7:54 PM PDT

Daily writing prompt for September 18, 2007 from yahoo group Daily Writing Practice.

I am dedicating this poem to Baha'u'llah

It's raining now
the blessing of God are descending upon the earth
each drop carried by an angel.

It's raining now
the verses of God flow from the Garden of Paradise
and the Nightingale of Revelation calls to humanity.

It's raining now
the planet is receiving the water of unity
from the clouds of love and faith.

It's raining now
and all the thirsty people are drinking their fill
of the verses of God's promised one.

It's raining now
and the voice of the Nightingale
intones prayers of praise and thanksgiving.

It's raining now
and the Glory of God proclaims
earth as a single tree and humanity it's leaves.

It's raining now
step out of you houses
and feel the rain of God's love.

It's raining now
dance beneath the clouds of faith
and drink your fill of life's water.

Hot Java

12 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Wednesday, September 19, 2007 about 6:44 AM PDT

I went to and read in the 9th Annual Las Vegas Ladies Poetry Night at the reJAVAnate last night. This event hasn't always been at the reJAVAnate, it's been held at several different coffee houses over the past nine years. The title for this years event was Hot Java. My mother read last night as well.

The house was packed and I saw several people I haven't seen in a year. Actually I haven't been to a lot of poetry readings in the past year or is is seven months (it's possible I attended an open mic either in February or March of this year). I went to men's night last month and then read in women's night last night. Other then that I haven't participated in or been to reading in a while. You'd think I'd remember the last time I attended a poetry reading, but the last seven months have been stressful to say the least. I think things are looking up, they appear to be looking up.

Last night's reading was fun. Mom and I had two different drink, when I got there I bought us a hot chai latte and then we got a large Mocha Java. There was also birthday cake there so we had some cake. I haven't had a slice of birthday cake or any type of cake in some time.

'Izzat is half over

10 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Monday, September 17, 2007 about 7:23 AM PDT

'Izzat (Might) is half over, there are precisely nine days left until the next Feast and the next month. The next feast is Mashiyyat (Will). I'm slowly approaching the Feast that marks the anniversary of my declaration of faith in Baha'u'llah. I didn't declare my belief at the Feast of Qawl (Speech) on the evening of November 22, but that was the first Feast I attended after declaring some thirty years ago.

I began dating my journal with the Baha'i date some time after that, but I'm not quite sure when I begin dating the journals that way. I'll have to check my earlier journals to find out. Right now most of those journals are in my bedroom in a trunk. I think I'll start going through the old journals to see what I have that I can work into poems, essays or stories. There are, also, poems that need rewriting.

I'm not sure when I start keeping a journal on a regular basis. However, I don't think I started until after I became a Baha'i. In high school or junior high (middle school) I kept a diary, but that's not a journal. I don't know what happened to it; I don't think it got to Las Vegas, Nevada, from Blackwell, Oklahoma with me.

It's interesting the things we remember and the things we forget. I can remember my first Feast and when it was, but I can't remember precisely when I started a journal. I'm thinking it was after I became a Baha'i and the it had something to do with a class at CCSN (Community College of Southern Nevada) I took. I think the class had something to do with writing and the journal was part of the grade. I'll have to look for my old journals and see.

This year the Feast of Qawl occurs on the evening of Thursday, November 22, and Thanksgiving falls on that day as well. I'm supposed to go to my nieces for Thanksgiving Dinner that day and Feast occurs at 7:00 P.M. I'm not sure whether there is a conflict here or not, I won't know until I contact my niece and see what time she is planning on serving dinner. I there is a conflict then I'll go to my nieces, I've already accepted the invention and I think that it's God's will that Mom and I spend Thanksgiving with her and her family.

I Bought a New Mop

9 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Sunday, September 16, 2007 about 1:21 PM PDT

I bought a new spaghetti mop last week, but when I bought it I wasn't thinking ahead. I didn't get any Pine Sole (which Grandma Newland) always put in her mop water. So when I mopped the floor I had to use bleach and laundry detergent. That will be all right for a while, but I'm going to have to get something else within the next week or so.

The mop is one of those that you wring out by hand. My grandmother used this type of mop or a rag mop all her life. I don't remember her ever using a sponge mop even when her arthritis was acting up. I don't like sponge mops myself, the don't work like I think they should. The new mop I can get a new mop head for when I have to. It's a wonderful mop, it works like a mop should work especially on the difficult spots. True sometimes I have to use a little "elbow grease" (that's how Grandma referred to getting hard dirt up), but the mop works much better than a sponge mop.

I think I can get a mop bucket to wring the mop out, I'll have to check on that. I didn't see anything at the grocery store I bought the mop at, but I'll probably have to go someplace else to get that. Right now I'm using an old cat litter bucket as a mop bucket. It works even if I have to wring the mop out by hand and wash the mop bucket out periodically.

I think I've all ready put the mop in my gratitude journal, but I think I'll do it again. I'll also say a prayer of thank from the prayer book. Things have been bit bit difficult lately, lots of tests and difficulties. I need to learn thankfulness in adversity. I think that was one of the reasons I started my gratitude journal. Lately I've put something in it every day. Sometimes I put only one thing I'm grateful for and sometimes ten things, but I put something in it everyday.

Make the Soul Strong

8 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Saturday, September 15, 2007 about 3:03 PM PDT

A list of things that make the soul strong:

1. Tests and difficulties
2. Prayer
3. Daily reading of the scripture
4. Meditation
5. Writing in a journal
6. Laughter
7. Tears
8. Joy and sorrow
9. Faith
10. Spiritual attributes
11. Trust in God
12. Fear of God
13. Knowing that the Creator always keeps promises
14. Living by the golden rule
15. Going to spiritual services
16. Looking for the answer to a prayer when the answer you want doesn't come
17. Smiling at others even when they scowl at you
18. Searching for truth independently
19. Daily work

Noticing the Essential

7 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Friday, September 14, 2007 about 12:06 PM PDT

Love is noticing the essential,
the little thing that unit humanity
into a single race.

Faith is noticing the essential,
the golden thread that run through
the tapestry of religion:
the Golden Rule.

Noticing the essential
bring the scattered segments of humanity
together through love.

Noticing the essential
is searching for truth independently
and judging for one's self.

Noticing the essential
encourages the soul to search
through the darkness for light.

Thankful Thursday Gratitude Journal Entry

7 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Thursday, September 13, 2007 about 8:33 PM PDT

Dear Glory,

Today I am thankful for the wind that blows through to olive and stone pine trees in my front yard. When I am outside the wind makes soft music that whispers through the olive leave and pine needle.

Today I am grateful for the bucket of laundry detergent that I bought at Food 4 Less last week. I can wash 150 loads of laundry before I have to get another bucket.

Today I am thankful for the fabric sheets I got at Albertsons' on Monday (maybe I should start making a grocery list before I go to the store and I wouldn't for get anything). I can dry 160 loads of laundry before worrying about getting more.

Today I am grateful for coffee warmed over in the microwave. It taste as good as it did when I first made it this morning or was it yesterday morning. I pour the left over coffee into a Tupperware container and then warm it over in a white microwavable coffee cup.

Today I am thankful for having enough gas in the car to last until Saturday before worrying about where the money for another few gallons will come from.

Today I am grateful for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I had my first peanut butter and jelly sandwich in two years on Monday. I still remember the taste of it and the pleasant memories of my grandparents that came to mind.

Today I am thankful for the mourning doves that eat the olives that fall of the olive tree.

Today I am grateful for the neighbor's cat that walks through my yard everyday and pauses to look through either the living room window or the screened in patio windows.

Today I am thankful for having completed the iVillage course on business before the close of class on September 14.

Today I am grateful for the prayers for praise and gratitude in the Baha'i Prayer book.

Thankfully yours,
Prosperous Snow, Poet 999, Neva F. Darbe

To Go To Bed or Stay Up

6 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Tuesday, September 12, 2007 about 11:01 PM PDT

To go to bed or stay up that is the question. I'm sitting in front of the computer dozing off. Before I started this entry I was reading e-mail and taking surveys until I started to sleep sitting up. The problem is that as soon as my head hits the pillow I'll be wide awake again. This has happened several times in the past week or so.

Monday night I sit on the patio with my prayer book and prayed. I found myself dozing off. In fact, I actually went to sleep sitting in a patio chair. I woke up and went to bed, I laid there looking either out the window or at the ceiling. The view out the window was a lot better because I could see Metro's helicopter flying over the neighborhood.

It's going to be this way for the next month and a half. As soon as I get up and go to bed I won't be able to fall asleep, but if I stay up working at the computer I'll doze off. I wouldn't mind staying up in November because that NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month) I'm going to sign up again this year. The sign ups start on October 1, Novel Writing Month starts on November 1. Then I wouldn't mind getting up again and going back to the computer.

Now, however, I'd like to get a little sleep and sleeping in a chair isn't restful. Tomorrow I'm taking Mom in for another blood test. This is the second on this week and I can tell you she isn't happy about it. I'm not all that joyous about it myself. Fortunately we have a handicap permit because of Mom's inability to walk long distances. Still waiting in the line and then in the Quest waiting room is tiring.

Evening Thoughts in September

2 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Sunday, September 9, 2007 about 7:10 PM PDT

The sun is slowly setting behind the western mountains. Of course, I can't see the sunset because my garage hides the view. It's early September and I'm doing laundry. I've did laundry everyday for the past seven months. I'll probably be doing laundry for the next seven months. I bought a enough laundry detergent to do 150 loads, so that ought to last for a while.

It's less then four months to the end of 2007. It's less then four months to my birthday. I'm a Christmas Eve baby. I'm a baby boomer, I'll be 61 my next birthday. This has been a stressful year and while I don't normally attend or commemorate December 31 or January 1 New Year celebrations, I might make an exception this year. I usually celebrate the Baha'i New Year, Naw-Ruz, on March 20/21.

Of course I could just as easily celebrate my birthday. I usually don't go out on Christmas Eve if I don't have to, but this year is different. I get the feeling that all the stress and difficulties I've encountered have more to do with birth then anything else. I'm emerging from my cocoon. I'm seeing the world through new eyes. I actually find doing laundry and scrubbing the floors on my hands and knees spiritual experiences. I'm also getting a new mop tomorrow and it won't be a sponge mop.

In October I celebrate becoming a member of writing.com. In November I celebrate declaring my faith in Baha'u'llah. Each of these are important mile stones in my life. The most important of the two is my Declaration of Belief in Baha'u'llah and the attendance of my first Feast as a Baha'i. Finding Baha'u'llah was the most important thing to happen to me since my birth into this world. I'm not sure how I'm going to celebrate this event this year, I probably won't know until a few days before I'm planning on celebrating.

A Place I Long For

1 'Izzat 164 B.E. - Saturday, September 8, 2007 about 4:53 PM PDT

Daily Writing Practice Prompt for September 7, 2007: Write about a place you long for.

I long for a garden on a mountain. A garden with fountains and steps to ascend the mountain. Steps that have water running on either side of them.

I long for a garden that is a holy place. A garden with trees and flowers, where the children of God gather to celebrate His praise.

I long for a garden with memorials and places to pray. A garden on a mountain. A mountain with building on the top and terraces that steps ascend.

I long for a garden, a place in nature where I can sit and pray. A place in nature where I can sit and write poems. A place I can describe in my journal and then transpose to a blog.

I long for a garden, that is a place for my soul and mind to rest. A place my mind can meditate on the beauty of the world. A place where I can sit and rest while the world and history walk by for a little while.

I long for a garden on a mountain, with steps that I can climb to the top. A mountain where I can rest half way up and kneel to pray in a shrine holding the dust of a Manifestation of God.

Approaching the end of Asma

18 Asma 164 B.E. - September 05, 2007 about 8:10 PM PDT

The end of Asma 164 B.E. is approaching. The Feast of 'Izzat in on the evening of Friday, September 7. I've decided I need to make some changes to the way I do things. I'm setting up a daily schedule so that I can get other things done besides housework and stuff like that. I'm working on line, so I need to work at least 40 hours a week to increase my income. This will give me a chance to have a "day off" if I want to take it.

My problem is I get focused on one thing and don't want to stop or let it go until it's finished. However, this doesn't always work because if I get stuck on something I have to get away from the project. Interruptions don't always come when you want them to. I'd like interruptions to occur when I'm "butting my head against a wall", when I encounter a difficulty that needs "day dreaming" time to resolve. Unfortunately, I'm a bit stubborn, take after my father on that one, and I attempt to stick it out getting "no where fast". I'm hoping this new approach will help.

Anyway, as I said the end of Asma is approaching in a couple of days and a new month starts. I'm going to attempt the schedule in 'Izzat and see how it works. I've attempted schedules before with varying results. The problem with schedules is something usually interrupts them. I found where I went wrong on that. I didn't allow for the interruptions. For the getting in the car and driving all the way across town to take care of a bill or some other item.

Driving across Vegas is an experience. It takes time and nothing is convenient, which takes gas. I'm not sure what I'm writing makes sense or has anything to do with the end of one month and the beginning of another. I'm working the schedule so that it officially starts in 'Izzat. It will start on Saturday, September 08, I'll see how it works for 19 days then redo it if I have to.

Happy Birthday Writing.com

17 Asma 164 B.E. - September 04, 2007 about 11:12 PM PDT

In September writing.com is celebrating its 7th birthday. This year I'm coming out of my cocoon and entering into the festivities. I wrote a poem The Best Gift and entered it into one of the birthday contest. I'm reviewing new writers on the site as part of the birthday celebration. I'm enjoying myself.

I like writing.com because it helped bring me out of my cocoon. The reviews I receive help me improve my writing. The reviews I give help me improve my writing, I know that sounds strange because reviews are supposed to help the person being reviewed. Reviews help improve my writing by showing me examples of both excellent and other types of writing. I, normally, review items rated 18+ or lower. However, sometimes I review the higher ratings, especially if a piece I've reviewed is the first in a group of short stories or poems.

My handle on writing.com is Prosperous Snow. My portfolio is located at http://Writing.Com/authors/nfdarbe and my blog Snow Melt (rated 18+) is http://Writing.Com/authors/nfdarbe/blog.

End of the Month Blues

13 Asma 164 B.E. - August 31, 2007 about 9:43 PM PDT

I'm not sure what's been wrong with me all day. I've felt sort of sad or down. Not that I'm unhappy, but just a little blue. It's probably because it's the end of the month and almost the end of 2007. I feel like I'm floating in circles and getting nowhere fast.

I run out of laundry detergent today, so I went to the store. I got detergent, trash bags, toilet paper, bleach, red and green salsa, barbecue sauce, Arizona ice tea, and beef patties. Earlier today after we picked up Mom's meds we went to KFC and got their 10 piece meal. I'm going to put the barbecue sauce on the chicken that is left and let it marinate. I cooked rice yesterday, I'll put the salsa in the rice.

Maybe I'm blue because the only time I've been out to eat in the past month is to get a KFC meal deal. I'd really like a prime rib with raw horseradish, baked potato with butter and sour cream and a nice salad.

Mom and I went to the poetry reading on Tuesday, I'm thinking we'll go to the Labor Day open mic next Tuesday. There is a feast at the Baha'i center on Friday evening, so I won't go to the First Friday reading in the Art's district this month. I'll have to check October's calender, but I think the First Friday in October is open (unless something comes up) so I'll go to the reading then.

I could also be blue because this hasn't been a productive day. However, tomorrow will be different. Saturday, September 1, is recyclable day in my neighborhood, so I'm going to take the recyclables out. I'm not sure that I'll get everything out, but I'll get most of the recyclables out this week. There are three recyclable days in September, so that should let me get all that stuff out of the garage.

I'm going to attempt to get most of the laundry done tomorrow. The washing machine isn't level so I have to stand by against it when it goes through the spin cycle or it moves and I have to push it back into position. Pushing the washer isn't good for my back and standing by it while it's spinning gives me a chance to meditate. I don't think I have all that many loads, so it shouldn't take a long time to do. While I'm waiting for the cloths to wash I can clean off the kitchen counter, wash the microwave out or do the dishes.

I suppose doing laundry and dishes is productive, but I'd like to be doing something else. I'd prefer to write or read. I still have to find a decent mop. I'm working with sponge mops right now and I don't like them, but their all we have around the house. I really didn't know how much I didn't like them until I started doing all the floors with Mom being sick and unable to do them. I don't know how she worked with a sponge mop. I'm probably going to end up on my hands and knees scrubbing floors.

Scrubbing floors on my hands and knees is a spiritual experience. However, my right knee bothers me worse than usual when I do that. I haven't discussed it with a doctor because I have other health problems that are more important. The knee normally only bothers me if I walk over a mile or something like that.