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.