What Makes Me Happy?

12 Baha 164 B.E. – Sunday, April 1, 2007

Someone asked me this question the other day. At the time my answer was The Tablet of Ahmad, I said I thought that I had almost learned it by heart. Since then I’ve thought about the question and here is my answer.

Several things make me happy. Baha’u’llah makes me happy. Reading the scripture He revealed makes me happy. My mother makes me happy. Listening to her talk makes me happy. Having her around makes me happy. Writing makes me happy. I like writing short stories, poems and essays. Coffee makes me happy. I enjoy drinking good coffee. My mother makes good coffee. I like regular coffee without cream. I also like specialty coffees such as Café Mocha and unusual blends such as Kona Coffee. Going to Feast makes me happy. I enjoy listening to the readings from the Baha’i scriptures and talking to everyone attending. These are only a few of the things that make me happy. Maybe that would be a good theme for a list poem.

My Mom’s been in the hospital for the past three or four weeks. She is still in SICU, she went into that unit after her operation on March 19, which was also her birthday. Sometimes she is doing better and other times she is the same. I miss her, I go to see her twice a day, but I still miss her. I miss her making coffee she makes good coffee. I miss her talking about what poem she is working on and the other things she talks about when she is here.

I’m making my own coffee these mornings. When Mom’s home that is one of the things, she enjoys doing. I am glad to know that I haven’t forgotten how to make good coffee, but maybe that’s one of those activities like riding a bike. Once you learn how to do it, you never forget. There isn’t a lot of difference between riding a bike and making coffee. Both of them take balance; it’s just that it’s a different type of balance with each one. In making coffee you have to balance the coffee grounds with the amount of water, while riding a bike is more of physical or bodily balance. Living takes balance; you have to balance the material with the spiritual. Happiness takes balance. Everything we do in life takes balance.