The Wisdom of Pilgrimage


                                                                        Monuments, Mount Carmel, Israel

'Holy places are undoubtedly centres of the outpouring of Divine grace, because on entering the illumined sites associated with martyrs and holy souls, and by observing reverence, both physical and spiritual, one’s heart is moved with great tenderness.'

From a Tablet revealed by ‘Abdu’l-Baha

Quinault Woman

Dedicated my my friend Maedeh Yazdani--a luminous spirit if there ever was one.

Call To Be

Translation in progress. Please wait...

Surprising you and others,
We elevate. We lift. We conquer.
Letting you discover, what a promise kept can offer.
Keep in touch uncover ideas left to drown no longer.
Hold your breath go under.
Rise again in loving waters.

Oh oh I, this is just a call to be true to you.
Oh oh I, flying high we fly so close, so bright, so wild.

Heating up it bubbles.
Steaming out our previous mantras.
Leaving lost our troubles,
Communicate the wish diminishing.
This goes out to lovers
Standing up embraced enamored.
Keeping feet square under looking back and forth to wonder...

Oh oh I, this is just a call to be true to you.
Oh oh I, flying high we fly so close, so bright, so wild.

Surprising you and others,
We penetrate. We lift. We conquer.
Letting you discover, a promise kept make trust these offers.

Keep in touch uncover.
Ideas found they drown no longer.
Hold your breath go under. Rise again in loving waters.

 

Quinault Rain Forest

A great West Coast Swing...

              

Ustad Isma'il knew Detachment from this World

Ustad Isma'il knew detachment from this world

A devoted follower of Baha'u'llah was the old man, Ustad Isma'il, who had been a master builder in his native Persia, and who had walked from his homeland to Akka despite his advanced age to be near the object of his devotion. At that time, however, by official decree, it was not permitted for Baha'u'llah to receive visitors, and Baha'is would hope to catch a glimpse of the Blessed Beauty at his cell window from across the moat.

Owing to Ustad's feeble eyesight, however, he could not see the hand of Baha'u'llah waving to him and tearfully, he turned away, brokenhearted. Eventually, however, restrictions were relaxed, and Ustad Isma'il attained the presence of Baha'u'llah, and he was content to live out his life living in a cave on Mount Carmel, earning a living as a peddler, selling needles, thimbles and other notions from a small tray.

 A few of the visitors to my backyard this year (images from web)

Rufous-sided Towhee

Northern Flicker

Western Tanager

Yellow-rumped Warbler

American Robin

Common Yellowthroat Warbler

And my favorite, the Black-capped Chickadee. There are at least two of them that seem to hang out with the Sparrows and the Towhee.  I've read that the Chickadees are engaging with humans, and that's certainly the case with my two little friends.  They've caught my eye out the kitchen window a few times, letting me know that the feeder is empty.  They also come very near when I'm hanging out my laundry.  They seem to be curious about what I'm doing.

Be sure to click on this picture I grabbed from Wikipedia--it's sensational!

The prison at Maku, Persia (Iran).

Sierra






What about the one who said he loved you?
What about the one who said he cared?
Don't bother trying to find him
Way up in the icy air

Oh, you played with his heartstrings
And you played without a care
But not up in the High Sierra
You won't play his heart out there

The angels lay their clouds across his sky 
They line up for him every night
Some have wings and others sing
The rest do lazy ballets in the air

There he's got a bird to give him warning
And he's gotta lookout too
The beauty of the High Sierra
And she's looking out for you

The angels lay their clouds across his sky
They line up for him every night
Some have wings and others sing
The rest do lazy ballets in the air

What about the one who said he loved you?
What about the one who said he cared?
He's up in the High Sierra
But don't bother looking there

 (From: http://www.elyrics.net)

San Juan Grade Road, Salinas, California