Mona singing the Baha'i Prayer "Blessed is the Spot" at the library
Two weeks ago, I took Mona to the public library to borrow some books for the both of us.
When we got to the library, we went straight to the kids section and Mona started to play with the toys there. She was pretending to make coffee for me with the little teapot and cups. She served me some coffee and told me to be careful because it was hot. Then she started to serve coffee to some people that were around us as well. It was really cute and everyone really seemed to enjoy their pretend coffee.
After choosing some books for her, we went to the adult section to choose some books for me.
While i was browsing around, Mona took a book from one of the shelf, as i didn't want her to tear it apart, i tried to take it from her, but she insisted that it was her book and didn't let go of it. After a little while, she sat on one of the sofa and started to read her book. To my amazement, she started to sing a Baha'i Prayer. For the very first time, Mona closed her eyes and started to sing the Baha'i Prayer "Blessed is the spot" by Baha'u'llah.
I was so surprised, that i didn't know what to do: Do i tell her to stop singing the prayer and be quiet as we were in the library, or do i let her say her prayer as she was so into it and singing it and doing it properly, without me telling her how to sit with closed eyes to say the prayer??
I decided to let her sing, and from time to time i had to remind her to sing in a low voice, as the singing was getting louder and louder. She sang the prayer over and over again, and each time with her eyes closed. I was so proud of her.
Then i remembered that i had the digital camera with me, and quickly got it out to record the end of her prayer singing session at the library. (Below is a video of what i recorded along with my English translation of what she was actually singing.)
The next week, we went again to the library, and as soon as we got inside, Mona asked for her book, I told her i don't know where the book was, so she went and took a different book from one of the shelf (it was a book about quilting), then she sat on the sofa, and started to sing the Baha'i Prayer 'Blessed is the Spot" very very loudly. I reminded her that we had to keep our voice down when we were in the library, then she started to sing the prayer in a whisper voice... it was so cute!!
Enjoy the video...
When we got to the library, we went straight to the kids section and Mona started to play with the toys there. She was pretending to make coffee for me with the little teapot and cups. She served me some coffee and told me to be careful because it was hot. Then she started to serve coffee to some people that were around us as well. It was really cute and everyone really seemed to enjoy their pretend coffee.
After choosing some books for her, we went to the adult section to choose some books for me.
While i was browsing around, Mona took a book from one of the shelf, as i didn't want her to tear it apart, i tried to take it from her, but she insisted that it was her book and didn't let go of it. After a little while, she sat on one of the sofa and started to read her book. To my amazement, she started to sing a Baha'i Prayer. For the very first time, Mona closed her eyes and started to sing the Baha'i Prayer "Blessed is the spot" by Baha'u'llah.
I was so surprised, that i didn't know what to do: Do i tell her to stop singing the prayer and be quiet as we were in the library, or do i let her say her prayer as she was so into it and singing it and doing it properly, without me telling her how to sit with closed eyes to say the prayer??
I decided to let her sing, and from time to time i had to remind her to sing in a low voice, as the singing was getting louder and louder. She sang the prayer over and over again, and each time with her eyes closed. I was so proud of her.
Then i remembered that i had the digital camera with me, and quickly got it out to record the end of her prayer singing session at the library. (Below is a video of what i recorded along with my English translation of what she was actually singing.)
The next week, we went again to the library, and as soon as we got inside, Mona asked for her book, I told her i don't know where the book was, so she went and took a different book from one of the shelf (it was a book about quilting), then she sat on the sofa, and started to sing the Baha'i Prayer 'Blessed is the Spot" very very loudly. I reminded her that we had to keep our voice down when we were in the library, then she started to sing the prayer in a whisper voice... it was so cute!!
Enjoy the video...
The world is full of colours
Today we had our second Baha'i Toddler Devotional and Playgroup (Baha'i Children Classes for little ones of 1 to 4 yr old).
We decided on a name for our Baha'i Toddler Devotional and Playgroup and it is now going to be called "Tender Seedlings"
Don't you just love this name??? We do!! It's really cute and it's just exactly what our brilliant toddlers are.... tender seedlings of God!
The theme of today was "The world is full of colours".
We all got comfortably seated on the big purple rug and lots of comfortable cushions in the playroom and we started with prayers, we sang "Blessed is the spot" and said a Writing from Baha'u'llah.
The children present (Mona and Aryan) were more cooperative than at the previous class.
After the devotional it was time for 'Story Time" and the little tots were so excited when I took out my 'Story Time Box' (which is basically a toy box filled with toys, puppets, books, pictures, material etc that i would need for the specific story).
The story today was about the world being one big beautiful garden with lots of different things and colors that make it so beautiful. I explained with the help of toys and pictures how we are all different but at the same time we are one big family and also shared the quotation from Baha'u'llah "The earth is but one country and mankind it's citizen."
Then I told the children that i had a big problem and they both had very concerned looks on their faces. I told them that I had those beautiful drawings of children from around the world, but that there wasn't any colors on them and that I needed their help to put colors and make the drawings more beautiful. So they sat down at the table and started coloring the pictures with beautiful colors. After helping them a little bit, the two mums and 1 grandma present, moved to the big table where we had refreshments and discussed about the responsibilities of the spiritual education imposed upon us as is mentioned in the Baha'i Writings.
It was very inspiring for us and we shared a few examples as well.
The children came to joined us for refreshments and of course it wasn't without any mess.
But it was once more a very exciting and wonderful time for us all, the children really enjoyed it and so did the parents and we can't wait for the next 'Tender Seedlings' Playgroup!
We decided on a name for our Baha'i Toddler Devotional and Playgroup and it is now going to be called "Tender Seedlings"
Don't you just love this name??? We do!! It's really cute and it's just exactly what our brilliant toddlers are.... tender seedlings of God!
The theme of today was "The world is full of colours".
We all got comfortably seated on the big purple rug and lots of comfortable cushions in the playroom and we started with prayers, we sang "Blessed is the spot" and said a Writing from Baha'u'llah.
The children present (Mona and Aryan) were more cooperative than at the previous class.
After the devotional it was time for 'Story Time" and the little tots were so excited when I took out my 'Story Time Box' (which is basically a toy box filled with toys, puppets, books, pictures, material etc that i would need for the specific story).
The story today was about the world being one big beautiful garden with lots of different things and colors that make it so beautiful. I explained with the help of toys and pictures how we are all different but at the same time we are one big family and also shared the quotation from Baha'u'llah "The earth is but one country and mankind it's citizen."
Then I told the children that i had a big problem and they both had very concerned looks on their faces. I told them that I had those beautiful drawings of children from around the world, but that there wasn't any colors on them and that I needed their help to put colors and make the drawings more beautiful. So they sat down at the table and started coloring the pictures with beautiful colors. After helping them a little bit, the two mums and 1 grandma present, moved to the big table where we had refreshments and discussed about the responsibilities of the spiritual education imposed upon us as is mentioned in the Baha'i Writings.
It was very inspiring for us and we shared a few examples as well.
The children came to joined us for refreshments and of course it wasn't without any mess.
But it was once more a very exciting and wonderful time for us all, the children really enjoyed it and so did the parents and we can't wait for the next 'Tender Seedlings' Playgroup!
Our Baha'i Tube
Have you heard about Our Baha'i Tube?
It's just like youtube, but even much better, and is made by Baha'is for Baha'is.
You can post your videos there, as well as pictures, audios, and can even blog and write articles.
You can check out my blog and video page on Baha'i Tube here
You can sign in to share your videos and pictures and blogs with Baha'i Friends around the world.
I love it so far, and there are some really amazing videos there!
Go see for yourself!
http://ourbahaitube.com/index.php
It's just like youtube, but even much better, and is made by Baha'is for Baha'is.
You can post your videos there, as well as pictures, audios, and can even blog and write articles.
You can check out my blog and video page on Baha'i Tube here
You can sign in to share your videos and pictures and blogs with Baha'i Friends around the world.
I love it so far, and there are some really amazing videos there!
Go see for yourself!
http://ourbahaitube.com/index.php
Lemons at the 19 Day Feast...
Tonight was the Baha'i 19 Day Feast of 'Nur' which means 'Light'.
It was a longer feast than usual and i must admit that Mona was pretty much well-behaved for 3/4 of the time. She was talking in her low voice like we told her to, whispering, even though we had to remind her to keep her voice down, but she did a good job at it. We kept her busy with a drawing book and colored pencils and some snacks. After 1 hour though, she started acting up and didn't want to stay quiet, so I took her out for a bit and she ran and jump around for a bit till she got tired i think, then we went back inside and she was good again and when she saw the oranges on the refreshment table, she couldn't wait anymore... 'Mona hungry' she said when she saw the food on the table! lol...
During the feast, we remembered the dear friends in Iran who are prison because of their Faith and belief, and organised a special devotional meeting for them in our community. We read and discuss the message of Ridvan from the Universal House of Justice, shared news of activities that are happening in our community and I got to shared a bit about our first Baha'i Toddler Devotional and Playgroup, among other things.
So about the lemons you ask, well, we have a lemon tree in our backyard and it has been giving lots and lots of yummy lemons lately, so much that I didn't know what to do with them.
We gave lemons to our family members each week, but there are still plenty left and too much for me to use in daily cooking (all of my cooking now contains lemon juice! lol).
I wanted to prepare some lemon biscuits or lemon bars to bring to the feast, but i didn't have enough time to do it, so I though i will just bring the lemons to the feast for people who want to take some home.
The lemons went like hot cakes!! I was happy and so were the friends!!
It was a longer feast than usual and i must admit that Mona was pretty much well-behaved for 3/4 of the time. She was talking in her low voice like we told her to, whispering, even though we had to remind her to keep her voice down, but she did a good job at it. We kept her busy with a drawing book and colored pencils and some snacks. After 1 hour though, she started acting up and didn't want to stay quiet, so I took her out for a bit and she ran and jump around for a bit till she got tired i think, then we went back inside and she was good again and when she saw the oranges on the refreshment table, she couldn't wait anymore... 'Mona hungry' she said when she saw the food on the table! lol...
During the feast, we remembered the dear friends in Iran who are prison because of their Faith and belief, and organised a special devotional meeting for them in our community. We read and discuss the message of Ridvan from the Universal House of Justice, shared news of activities that are happening in our community and I got to shared a bit about our first Baha'i Toddler Devotional and Playgroup, among other things.
So about the lemons you ask, well, we have a lemon tree in our backyard and it has been giving lots and lots of yummy lemons lately, so much that I didn't know what to do with them.
We gave lemons to our family members each week, but there are still plenty left and too much for me to use in daily cooking (all of my cooking now contains lemon juice! lol).
I wanted to prepare some lemon biscuits or lemon bars to bring to the feast, but i didn't have enough time to do it, so I though i will just bring the lemons to the feast for people who want to take some home.
The lemons went like hot cakes!! I was happy and so were the friends!!
A Tribute to the True Lovers
We created a video tribute for the 7 baha'is of Iran in prison.
It is a poem written by Mrs. Shahla Nabilzadeh-Ghotbi (my mother in law) and she is actually reading the poem in both of the videos. One in Farsi (persian) and one in English.
I did the montage with the music, voice and pictures.
Here is the link for the videos:
For the english version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4f_G8bAc-E
For the farsi version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kfDZpHAUEI
If you like it, don't forget to rate it by giving 5 stars (just under the video player) so that many more people get to see the video.
The higher the ratings and numbers of viewers, the more chance people will see what is happening in Iran.
And please do share the links with friends.
Enjoy the videos.
Much love,
It is a poem written by Mrs. Shahla Nabilzadeh-Ghotbi (my mother in law) and she is actually reading the poem in both of the videos. One in Farsi (persian) and one in English.
I did the montage with the music, voice and pictures.
Here is the link for the videos:
For the english version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4f_G8bAc-E
For the farsi version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kfDZpHAUEI
If you like it, don't forget to rate it by giving 5 stars (just under the video player) so that many more people get to see the video.
The higher the ratings and numbers of viewers, the more chance people will see what is happening in Iran.
And please do share the links with friends.
Enjoy the videos.
Much love,
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