Shokufeh is... home

What a weekend

This weekend,
... I turned 34, starting the day off with the restorative power of saltwater.
... the five of us spent a relaxing 36 hours in Gulf Shores, Alabama.
... I became the excited owner of the cutest iPod shuffle ever! (Yes, somehow, it's cuter than yours.)
... on September 22, Dr. 'Ali-Muhammad Varqa, the last living Hand of the Cause of God, passed on to the next world. With this, comes the end of a unique time in history.
For the past twenty years, or so, I recognized how lucky I am to live right now - that I get to see the formation and manifestation of parts of the Baha'i Administrative Order (perhaps this is where my fascination with systems stems from?) laid out more than 150 years ago, while also getting to share the earth with Hands of the Cause of God. And not just getting to be on the planet with them, but having the honor to meet several of them, several times. I recognize how lucky I am to have been held by Mr. Faizi, to have considered Mr. Sears my extra grandfather, to have received a ringstone from Ruhiyyih Khanum. I also recognize that these experiences are not unique to me, but to the time in which I am so fortunate to live. I saw Dr. Varqa speak on a couple of occasions, most recently during our pilgrimage, in March of 2005.
While I anticipated it, now that there are no living Hands of the Cause, I think how strange it is that my children will not have this tangible connection to this period of history. I hope that they will still recognize the unique station of these individuals. And that will develop a personal relationship to some of them through the stories they read and hear. I also feel a greater urgency to hear more from those individuals who are still with us who were fortunate enough to meet, and receive personal direction from, Shoghi Effendi.

Light and glory, greeting and praise be upon the Hands of His Cause, through whom the light of fortitude hath shone forth and the truth hath been established that the authority to choose rests with God, the Powerful, the Mighty, the Unconstrained, through whom the ocean of bounty hath surged and the fragrance of the gracious favours of God, the Lord of mankind, hath been diffused. We beseech Him--exalted is He--to shield them through the power of His hosts, to protect them through the potency of His dominion and to aid them through His indomitable strength which prevaileth over all created things. Sovereignty is God's, the Creator of the heavens and the Lord of the Kingdom of Names.
- Bahau'llah, Lawh-i-Dunya (Tablet of the World)