Leyla's Blog

In my son’s children’s prayer book, there is a sentence that has always baffled me: “…bestow Thou freedom while in a state of childhood…”

I thought he was already pretty “free”: free to get naked and play in the dirt; free to eat rice with his hands and then throw half of it on the floor; free to roll around in the grass without a worry…

So this friend of a friend’s arrives from Iran. It’s his first time out of the country and from the moment he arrives he’s blown away by everything that is different to what he had imagined. First of all, he mentions the beauty and cleanliness of what is an incredible infrastructure.

It’s amazing to see the world responding to what is going on in Haiti. Even if you’re a cynic, you have to admit that this kind of reaction is unprecedented in the history of humankind. Never before have we been this exposed to the most personal and immediate stories from people on the other side of the world.

I don’t know how it pans out exactly, but sometime during the first 6 or so years of our life a lot happens that forms our character and what I’d like to call our mental “filing system”. You can also call it paradigm or world-view. Everything that happens, everything we hear or see gets filed according to the files we have created.

A friend of mine sent me a lovely email today with some funny images on it. They were all titled “evolution” and were variations of that famous image of the Neanderthal that evolves from his ape-like state into an upright human being. One of the pictures depicted the process through a series of footprints. First it was a beast’s footprint, then a human footprint, then a man’s shoe-print and finally, a woman’s stiletto-print.

A friend of mine sent me a lovely email today with some funny images on it. They were all titled “evolution” and were variations of that famous image of the Neanderthal that evolves from his ape-like state into an upright human being. One of the pictures depicted the process through a series of footprints. First it was a beast’s footprint, then a human footprint, then a man’s shoe-print and finally, a woman’s stiletto-print.

Two rival political candidates were scheduled to speak at the county fair on the same program. Mulla Nasrudin was chosen to introduce them. He arose and said, "I want to present to you a man who, above anyone, has the welfare of each and everyone of you at heart. More than anyone I know, he is devoted to our great and glorious nation." Then he turned to the candidates and asked, "WHICH OF YOU FELLOWS WANTS TO TALK FIRST?"

Last night I was graciously invited to join a friend of mine who had won a dinner for herself and 9 of her friends at a new restaurant in town. The whole thing had been organized by one of the leading local women’s magazines and it was great fun. One of the promotional gags they had come up with was a 20-minute talk by an image consultant.

Whether you’re religious or absolutely not, you most definitely “believe”. Beliefs are what shape our realities. If we believe we are worthy and noble, we live a different life than if we believe we’re unworthy and low. And our thoughts have a huge impact on our beliefs, because whatever we perpetuate we internalize and after a while we eventually believe. That is why it is very important that we focus on positive things all the time – and look for the good in people, even if it means we have to do some diggin’!

The other day my little boy was busy on one of his important missions: pulling himself up on the book-shelf and meticulously throwing down all the books he could. These are his first milestones and I try to enjoy them attentively, because I know how fast he will grow up and leave the house and live his own life. And I wonder what will his life look like when he does. Will he be happy?

In his four part history of the Baha’i Faith, “Baha’u’llah’s Revelation”, Adib Taherzadeh makes an excursion into the marvelous world of butterflies. For me, his account of the process of metamorphosis is one of those buoys I can hold on to when waters get rough.

I'm sure you've sat in the sun and enjoyed its warmth, soaking in the energy and enjoying the bright colors of the world around you. You've heard the sprinklers, smelled the grass and felt so alive you could split an atom. No matter how many tests you may have in your life, how much trouble may weigh on your shoulders, when you come across a sunny day that makes the colors jump out of their skin, nothing can stop you from smiling.

The phrase "You strike a woman you strike a rock", has come to represent the strength of women in South Africa. On August 9th in 1956, when the apartheid regime legislated that all persons of African descent must carry special passes around with them, women petitioned against this law by marching to the union buildings in the country's capital, Pretoria.

August 12 marks International Youth Day and I have a great little story to inspire us. It's the story of my friend's son. My friend and her husband were called to their son's school one day. They were both a little worried and surprised. After all, their kid is the quintessence of gentle. What kind of trouble could he possibly be in? They arrived in school and the teacher began explaining what had happened in gym.

My life encompasses 3 decades so far. I spent the first decade waiting eagerly to be a teenager and adult. I spent the second decade waiting to finish school and study. I spent my third decade trying to figure out what will be my purpose and how I'll make my mark...