Reading the news these days can be very depressing.  It seems that every corner of the globe is being battered by economic problems, environmental problems, social problems…  And even all the experts and leaders, who used to talk with such conviction, all throw up their hands and say they don’t know what to do!  But as a Baha’i I believe this is part of the process of the birth of a new kind of world, one global in scope and fundamentally spiritual in nature.  These tests and this suffering is necessary so that we begin to think less about ourselves and more about others, and less about the material and more about the spiritual.  Baha’u'llah says that the “world is in travail”, but also tells us that out of the process a new world will be born.  The process won’t be easy, but I believe this is the time that we must begin to look at the world with new eyes, with the eyes of faith, and work for this goal.  It is also a time when we can look within ourselves to see how we can create positive change.  For my part I wanted to share a gift of a song, Should Prosperity Befall Thee, which seems particularly appropriate for this time (the guitar is performed by Jason Cohen and produced by Jarome Matthew).  The words come from the Hidden Words of Baha’u'llah and say “Should prosperity befall thee, rejoice not, and should abasement come upon thee, grieve not, for both shall pass away and be no more.”

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Please feel free to share the link with your friends.  I hope you enjoy it.

The marriage CD project is now in full swing and almost all the vocals have been recorded.  We are now working on adding live instrumentation to the pieces.  I look forward to going over all the songs with Jarome, hearing the different live instruments that were recently recorded and choosing the best parts.  I did not have the opportunity to do that in person with Jarome for the ‘Fire and Gold’ CD and am cherishing the chance to do so this time. As I had written in a previous blog, this next CD will be accompanied by a special booklet which will include quotations on love and marriage.  I am compiling quotations and am including quotes and lovely sayings from different sources that are inspirational and enchanting.  If you come across any favorite quotes on this theme or have written your own poems/quotes on the subject, please send them.  Thanks! Below are a few of my favorite quotes that will be printed in the booklet:

“Love is the poetry of the senses.” - Honore de Balzac

“Chains do not hold a marriage together. It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years.” - Simone Signoret

“…Marriage is the commitment of the two parties one to the other, and their mutual attachment of mind and heart. Each must, however, exercise the utmost care to become thoroughly acquainted with the character of the other, that the binding covenant between them may be a tie that will endure forever. Their purpose must be this: to become loving companions and comrades and at one with each other for time and eternity…” - Abdu’l-Baha

Thought of the Day:

“Love is the only flower that grows and blossoms without the aid of the seasons.”

- Kahlil Gibran

Thought of the Day:

“Not everything that a man knoweth can be disclosed, nor can everything that he can disclose be regarded as timely, nor can every timely utterance be considered as suited to the capacity of those who hear it.”

-Baha’u'llah

I love this quotation and wanted to share with you. It has helped me on several occasions to find balance and moderation in what I say and what I do.