Because we are short on writing motivation...

...here is the really, very shortened summary of the past two months. : )

1. Andy's B-day

2. Holly's visit to Trinidad - bringing with her a rekindlement of our own commitment and enthusiasm...Thank-you Holly.

3. Some of the family's visit to Trinidad! woohoo!

4. Progress in some ongoing study circles.

5. A new Baha'i in our community (our neighbor :))

6. More teaching.

7. Disappointments and cancellations. (It's ok though...crisis and victory, right!)

8. Really good food and learning to cook really good food.

9. An unexpected trip to the States.

10. NEW CYCLE AND EXPANSION WEEKEND! (Can you tell we are excited about that?)

11. Some animator training.

12. Getting more adept at living without running water.

13. Two great weekends of collective teaching, with this past weekend ending in some great set-ups of study circles, one with a group of youth specifically for the purpose of starting a children's class and junior youth group with the idea that they will be leading them after the training.

14. Anticipation for the two-week long Inter-Institutional Gathering! With all the pioneers from the different islands, a new set of pioneers, Counselors and coordinators of the Initiative coming together and two special guests from the World Centre. (And definitely there will be a lot of studying of the Ridván Message).

Love to everyone.

Be like the farmer.

As I sign in to our blog, and look straight away to the title "Caribbean Breezes of Confirmation", I am constantly reminded of all the confirmations that we have experienced in this great task set before us in the Central Cluster in Trinidad. We know and are aware that these confirmations come through the effort that we put forth, but at times it seems to me that confirmations come in mysterious ways - where we find opportunities given to us that seem to come with little or no effort put forth to receive them. I feel that this is due to many interrelated forces - some that we know of (like the rise in receptivity in the world) and others that are not so clear, like the power of prayer for example. One thing we can be certain of is that if we only arise to serve the Cause of Baha'u'llah, things will start to fall in to place.

A couple weeks ago, Andy and I had been discussing something that we had heard the Counselor comment on during the initial training for the Caribbean Initiatve - that we should really try to look for educated youth to help carry on the work of the Cause and that they would prove a source of great growth for the community. We were really noticing that the youth that we had talked to so far seemed to be heading right in this direction. One thing we really hoped for was to be able to work with more of these youth and see where they would lead the community.

A little later on, we received an email from one of the Baha'is that there was someone interested in learning more about the Faith that lived in our area and who we should contact. Andy called him up and it turned out that he was a youth in the university here and lived only a couple driving minutes away from where we are living. He came over to our house the next week and we were able to have a really nice conversation together about the Faith. We could tell he was very interested. After he left, we laughed about how we didn't even need to go out and look for these youth anymore - they were coming to us! (Previously the guy who now helps out with the Jr. Youth group, actually brought up the subject to us, rather than us bringing it up to him!)

The following week this youth, Steve, came again and we were able to start Book 1 that day. Afterward he told us that he had just found out something that was surprising to both us and him...He had been talking to his mother about learning of the Faith, when she told him that he used to go to a Baha'i children's class when he was a child. The seeds that must have been planted in his heart during that time...have now led him back to the faith again.

So now we must be like the farmer and try to irrigate the fields where previous seeds have been planted and nurture the plants that are now growing.

~

I am, O my God, but a tiny seed which Thou hast sown in the soil of Thy love, and caused to spring forth by the hand of Thy bounty. This seed craveth, therefore, in its inmost being, for the waters of Thy mercy and the living fountain of Thy grace. Send down upon it, from the heaven of Thy loving-kindness, that which will enable it to flourish beneath Thy shadow and within the borders of Thy court. Thou art He Who watereth the hearts of all that have recognized Thee from Thy plenteous stream and the fountain of Thy living waters.

~ Baha'u'llah

JYG!

Friday, February 12th, 2010: Second Junior Youth Group Meeting in Our Home

One of the activities that makes us so happy here is animating the Jr. Youth group in our neighborhood. For a while, previous to the start of the group, we had been trying to talk to different Jr. youth and their parents in the neighborhood and get a group started here. We met with a lot of enthusiasm from the families, but when the time came that we had set to have our first meeting, only one Jr. Youth was actually home and ready to come. It was a little disappointing but we got to chat with him (Muhammad) and re-plan to have the group the next Friday, in the mean time talking to more Jr. youth and the ones we had already talked to. The next meeting we had three jr. youth come, and even though it was small, it was a really successful meeting. We talked about service, excellence, our interests and all that group jazz and the group came up with a lot of ideas for service projects and recreation ideas.

This meeting, we had four junior youth! So we are slowly adding on to the group. We had also a couple weeks back talked with a young 23 year old guy in the neighborhood (our next door neighbor) about the group and this time he came to help out! We were so happy about this because one of our main goals here is to train animators to work with the Junior Youth program. He really participated in the group discussions and brought out some great points that, cool enough, were very close to the ideas presented in Book 5! We got to talk to him a little at the end about the program happening all around the world and little bit of the vision of the program. Hopefully later on we can bring up the idea of him studying to become an animator!

Let's take a look at what one of our animators of the group has to say about his experience.

Andrew Cornwell, 21 yrs:

"Junior Youth Group has been an awesome experience so far. There have been a number of times when we have gone out with the intention to share Anna's Presentation with people in our neighborhood, only to end up meeting junior youth interested in coming to the group instead. Sometimes it seems like the junior youth are not overly excited about the group when we first introduce the program to them. Later though we find out they go home and tell their parents about it or were waiting to come to the meeting! Already one of the parents gave us food and drink for the group, and group has had some really cool ideas for service and activities they want to do. I am impressed!"

Invitation Made by one of the Jr. Youth to invite others to join the group

The three aspects of the group - service, study and social - and ideas that the group had for service and other activities.

94 Heron Crescent

Hello everyone! Yes, Andy and I have decided to start a blog to share our thoughts and pictures with you of our life and service here in Trinidad - but don't get too excited yet - it is yet to be determined whether there will be any posts after this one :P

Below are some pictures of our humble dwelling at 94 Heron Crescent, Couva, Trinidad. It has been about three weeks since we moved in and already we are getting attached to it I think. One of the special memories so far attached to our apartment relates back to one of our first nights here. Andy had invited our landlord and his family (who live above us) to come over to say prayers together. We thought it was likely that he wouldn't come, but to our lovely surprise he did! And brought his two daughters with him. He read some of the Baha'i prayers and pointed out ones that he liked in particular. After we had recited some aloud, he spent a lot of time in silence just reading the prayers on his own and took the prayer book home when he left. This is just one of the breezes of confirmation ; ) we have felt since our arrival!

We also have been doing most of the teaching in our neighborhood, so our house is also a base for reflection and getting our spirits pumped each day!

Kitchen area (and Andy!)

Living room area

Bathroom

Bedroom

******

"Blessed is the spot and the house and the place and the city and the heart and the mountain and the refuge and the cave and the valley and the land and the sea and the island and the meadow where mention of God hath been made and His praise glorified."

~ Baha'u'llah