I Blog Poetry and Prose

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

Well, January is almost gone, where did the time go? Unfortunately, I was in bed more than I was out. Let's talk about what you accomplished thus far in the new year. Did you make a resolution? Are you keeping it or is it already tossed aside? Did you set any writing goals? How are they going? Is there something you're excited about that's going well thus far?

Now, we're going to talk about February. Our brother group 30 Day is doing a 50/50 fundraising event. There will be prompts and the opportunity to win gps. Fivesixer is looking for packages in the mega raffle as well. Can you help him out.

Love Shouldn't Hurt Poetry and Short Stories contests begin on February 5th.

I believe February is National Haiku Month.

So how about making some new goals for the new month.

January 2019 got off to an interesting, stressful, and inspiring start. I placed my 2019 tentative goals in "New Year's Resolutions" , if I change any of the goals it will be around March 21, which is Naw-Ruz 176 B.E. In the meantime, I have managed to work on all of the goals each week. If I change anything in February, it will be the placeholder goal because it is no longer a placeholder, but a daily or every-other-day goal. I have finish the first of 200 poems I am writing to celebrate the Bicentenary of the Birth of The Bab, and placed it in "Bicentenary Poems and Prose" . That poem is "1 Muharram 1235 AH" .

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Midweek Reflections on A Woman Named Tahirih

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#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 1871 Life is what happens when you have dreams and are busy making plans. What do you think this means?

"What's Life: Two Versions"

What's Life:
Version 1

What's life but a wake-robin,
Leaving its scent in the air,
A rank smelling fake-robin,
Dying for lack of fresh air?

What's life but a banyan tree,
Sending its roots to the ground,
A cancerous effigy,
Spreading itself all around?

Life, life, we have cursed you twain,
With rife, missile, and knife,
Atom bomb, and acid rain,
How do you answer, "What's Life?"

What's Life:
Version 2

What's life but a didactic,
Lesson on how to survive,
Though its course is erratic,
It teaches us how to exist.

What's life but a quest,
To educate the soul about self,
And humanity's roll in the cosmos,
It bestows true wealth.

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January 30, 2019 at 11:14am

#950765

‘Idál (Justice), 12 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Wednesday, January 30, 2019

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Faith and A Loveless Life

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

It's the last day of the official competition, and the last War Chest Wednesday, so it's only fitting I repeat this prompt from November. Write a list of at least 5 blogging prompts to add to the Challenge War Chest to be used for future rounds of the 30DBC. Then, use one of your own prompts to write your entry.

Blogging Propts

Why is life worth living?

Describe the taste of rubies.

In Remembrance of...

Write about a woman.

Write about a man.

Prompt: Write about a woman.

A Woman Named Tahirih

A woman named Tahirih, dressed as a bride on her wedding day, stood facing her executioners. They were men like the ones she had known all her life. Men like her father, men like her brothers, men like her husband, and men like the religious leaders. Men who believed that women were their property. Men who either did not realize the Promised One had come ore refused to believe it. Men who never questioned orders given them by their superiors or the religious leaders, who feared the lose of the power they have over the citizens of Persia.

A woman named Tahirih, holding a silk scarf in her hand, stood facing her executioners. Knowing her children were being raised by one of her husband's other wives. Knowing her children would be told she was a heretic or worse. Knowing she loved them, but that love could not blind her to the Promised One, the Gate of God, or overshadow her love for Allah.

A woman named Tahirih, reviewing the major decisions that led to this moment, stared at the drunken soldier chosen to execute her. First there was the dream: In it she had encountered the Bab, the Gate of God, the Promised One. Second: She had accepted Him without having met Him; the other seventeen Letters 3 had met Him, and accepted Him during their meetings. Third, the Conference of Badasht. Her decision there was irrevocable, even at the time she made it. She had removed her veil, a thing unheard of in Persia (now Iran) at that time. She had removed her veil and went into the garden at Badasht with the rest of the believers, all male, and the world changed.

A woman named Tahirih, whispering a prayer, stood facing her executioners. She prayed, not for herself but, for those left behind. She was going to meet the Promised One at last. It was her fellow believers she prayed for, asking Allah t o make them steadfast in the face of opposition.

A woman named Tahirih handed her executioner her silk scarf and said: "You can kill me anytime you want, but you cannot prevent the emancipation of women."

In the mid eighteenth hundreds, a woman named Tahirih accepted the Gate of God. As a results of her faith she removed her veil. As a results of her faith she was strangled with her silk scarf, her body thrown into a well and stones were placed on top. The world has never been the same since.

Footnotes
3 The Letters of the Living were the first eighteen follows of the Bab.

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January 29, 2019 at 5:49pm

#950710

Fiḍál (Grace), 11 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Tuesday, January 29, 2019

GROUP

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#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 1870: What is a “loveless life” for you? Which kinds of love? Can anyone live loveless?

A Loveless Life

There is no such thing as a loveless life. If a person feels they are living a loveless life, they are deeply--and possibly clinically--depressed, and need to get some type of medical help as soon as possible. God love every human being not matter what the individual's religion, lack of religion, color, nationality, gender, gender identification, or any other label that individuals or groups may want to put on themselves or other people.

"O Son of Man!
Veiled in My immemorial being and in the ancient eternity of My essence, I knew My love for thee; therefore I created thee, have engraved on thee Mine image and revealed to thee My beauty."

Baha'u'llah 4

In the above quote Baha'u'llah, speaking in the voice of God, tells us that we are love. There are no limits on God's love, and the only thing we have to do is to believe that God loves us. When we believe in God's love, we can see it everywhere. I suspect that, some of the reasons, people think they are living a loveless life is because they don't believe they are lovable or they don't believe that God or anyone else loves them.

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 2263: Prompt: Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark. Rabindranath Tagore
Let this quote inspire your blog entry today.

Birds of Faith

The bird of faith sings
intoning its gratitude
before dawn's first rays.

Footnotes
4 The Hidden Words, Part One: From the Arabic, Number 2.

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January 29, 2019 at 4:14pm

#950706

Weather

Fiḍál (Grace), 11 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Tuesday, January 29, 2019

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Happiness, 1 Muharram 1235 AH, and Letting Go of the Past

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

My question for you has two parts: What is the worst weather you’ve experienced? And what is your ideal weather?

Worst Weather

An Oklahoma winter,
snow unabated
blocks the doors and the highway.

Las Vegas summer
triple digit temperatures
continue to rise.

Ideal Weather

Temperatures ranging
between the low sixties and
the high seventies.

Clear to partly cloudy skies,
with evening or morning rain:
snow capped mountain peaks.

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January 28, 2019 at 11:31am

#950639

Kamál (Perfection), 10 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Monday, January 28, 2019

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#1786069 by Fivesixer

Write about something happy in your life! What’s happened recently that made you smile? What’s the last thing you laughed at?

Happiness

What makes me happy? It's the little things that make me happy. The planned events where surprise encounters occur. Taking a walk down to the corner, and meeting a neighbor youth carrying two small puppies. Attending devotional services, that the Baha'i Center, and meeting an old friend. Picking up my monthly allotment of Senior Commodities, and finding I received a can of chili without beans. Going to a nearby food bank, and receiving a new shirt.

Smile
and people will
return your smile.

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 2262: Kindness, Gratitude, Beauty.

1 Muharram 1235 AH:
To The Bab

O Night of Beauty!
All the world lay sleeping in
beds of heedlessness.

O Night of Splendor!
I intone my gratitude
for the Creator's kindness--
for the birth of Siyyid `Alí Muhammad Shírází--
for the birth of The Bab
on this wondrous night.

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A Blogger's Reflections on Blogging

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Blog City - Every Blogger's Paradise.
#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 1869: “You will never say goodbye to the past, until you understand why the flashbacks haunt you.” ― Shannon L. Alder
What do you think of the quote? Write a story or a poem, if you wish.

Letting Go of the Past

Flashbacks keep returning because of a trauma of some type, which has emotions attached to it. Sometimes knowing why "the flashbacks haunt you" will prevent them from occurring, and sometimes it won't. Knowing why something keeps reoccurring is different from understanding or comprehending the emotion that causes the flash back to occur. It is difficult to let go of the past, especially when there is an emotional attachment to events that cause trauma. I've learned a few things when it comes to the past and emotional trauma. Those are (1) getting help for trauma is good, (2) writing about it helps deal with it, (3) if you encounter fear there is a good chance that the trauma behind the emotions is something that needs immediate attention, and (4)--which probably should be first--place the situation in the hands of the Almighty.

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January 27, 2019 at 2:26pm

#950577

This Much Is Known To Me

Jamál (Beauty), 9 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Sunday, January 27, 2019

This Much Is Known To Me

This much is known to me
love is the only true magic there is;
faith is breathing without air;
without love and faith this life is merely existing;
each individual has their own secret knowledge gained from experience;
when I read the Holy Scriptures of each religion, I feel the Holy Spirit echoing;
each individual is put on earth for a purpose;
the known to one individual can be speculation to another;
there is one God with many names;
each star has its planets and each planet its own life forms;
a woman's intuition is important to a woman's survival;
some people believe faith and speculation are the same thing;
intuition allows the individual to know many things, but you must accept intuition as a fact.

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January 27, 2019 at 10:47am

#950561

Jamál (Beauty), 9 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Sunday, January 27, 2019

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Pigeons Final Countdown and Creation and Destruction

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

Reflect on the 30 Day Blogging Competition as a whole. What is something you learned about yourself over the course of the month? What is something you learned about your fellow competitors?

On December 24, 2018, I turn 72 years young. You would think that in the pas 72 years I would have learned everything about myself there was to learn. Not true! I'm still learning things about myself. One of the things I learned is that I'm a better writer than though I was. True I still get then and than confused sometimes, but most of the time I use it properly. Another thing I'm learning about myself is that my memory is better than I thought it was. I'm remembering things I thought I had forgotten. Most of the time this is good, especially since my short term memory is working fairly well.

I hadn't thought about failing my first driver's test in a long time. I was living in Blackwell, Oklahoma, at the time, and taking care of my grandparents. My Grandfather was unable to drive any longer, but he still had his driver's license. Most of the time he set in the front seat with me. The day I took the test, my grandmother (who didn't have a driver's license) went with me. When the police officer ask if I had came with a licensed driver, I said "Yes, sire." He didn't ask Grandma to see her license, so I took the test. I guess I was nervous about the officer in the car and the lie about the licensed driver. Anyway I ran the stop sign, but didn't get a ticket.

What have I learned about my fellow bloggers? They are all talented and have wonderful senses of humor. I know they all have a sense of humor because at one time or another each one has cause me to smile or laugh at something they have written. I especially like Charlie ~

's sense of humor, which came out in "Invalid Entry"

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January 26, 2019 at 1:28pm

#950502

Jalál (Glory), 8 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Saturday, January 26, 2019

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

We’re in the final countdown of the competition! Only five prompts remain. For this final Creation Saturday, write about something that’s in its final countdown. Have fun!

Pigeons Final Countdown

Open the front door
and listen to the pigeons
counting down the final days of winter.

The sparrows are shivering silently in their nest,
but the pigeons know that spring is coming soon,
so they are counting down the final day of winter,
and hoping Punxsutawney Phil doesn't see his shadow.

Mojave Max hasn't emerged from his burrow,
so maybe spring is not so close at hand,
but the pigeon don't give a damn.

Pigeons don't care what other animals think,
they have their own final countdown to spring;
they feel the urge to mate,
and to lay and brood the next generation.

The pigeons have begun
the final countdown to spring,
with their cooing mating calls.

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 2260: “Every act of creation is first of all an act of destruction." ― Pablo Picasso” Use this to inspire you blog entry.

Creation and destruction

God spoke BE
and the nothingness of nonexistence
ways destroyed.

A painter placing paint
upon a white canvas,
and the plain canvas is destroyed,
while a beautiful picture is created.

A seed is placed in the ground,
the seed is destroyed
when it puts out roods and a shoot,
while a fruit tree or a flower is created.

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January 25, 2019 at 11:41am

#950429

Twelve Random Facts

Istiqlál (Independence), 7 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Friday, January 25, 2019

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

It's the last Fun Fact Friday of January! Here’s a straightforward prompt to celebrate: Make a list of at least ten random facts about yourself.

1. I believe saying prayers for the progress of the souls of those who have died helps them on their journey in the world of the spirit.

2. I receive comfort from the scent of roses.

3. Most people know that I thank of myself as a world citizen. What is not know is that I only begin think of myself this way after I declared my belief in Baha'u'llah.

4. The dictionaries I prefer to use are the Cambridge

or the Oxford

dictionaries.

5. I prefer to get my national and international news online.

6. I got my first traffic ticket while I was still learning to drive.

7. I failed my first driving tests because I ran a stop sign with the police officer in the passenger seat.

8. I drove with only a learner's permit and without a licensed driver in the seat beside me for several months before I got my driver's license.

9. When was driving from Las Vegas to San Diego, or any city in California, I preferred to drive the car at night.

10. I have driven up El Cajon Pass at night and in a dense fog.

11. As a child, while playing Hide-And-Seek with my cousins, I shut my self in an old refrigerator/

12. I am lucky to still be alive.

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January 24, 2019 at 12:12pm

#950347

Writing

Istijlál (Majesty), 6 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Thursday, January 24, 2019

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Wednesday Contemplations for January 23, 2019

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

How did you start writing? Did someone urge you to write, or did it come naturally?

Does writing come naturally? Yes, at least I think so. I have problems sometime with technical issues, however, the ideas seem to come naturally most of the time. Sometimes I have problems with idea block, I can become obsessed with rhyme and meter (especially when I'm composing in a specific form), and the evil Whisperer (the fear part of my human duality) will whisper doubt into my inner ears. When I hear fear or doubt echoing through my mind, I pick up my prayer book and read some prayers.

How did I start writing? I picked up my pen and begin putting words on paper. I have memories of making a family newsletter when I was in grade school. I don't have any copies of it or much of my early writing before moving to Las Vegas. The reason for this is that I just packed my bag, purchased a bus ticked, and came to Las Vegas. I left a lot of thing behind in Blackwell, which seems to be the theme of all my moves since. At this point I'm not too worried about what I left behind because it is past and I'm attempting let go of stuff I didn't bring with me. Most of my issues are cause by the thoughts and emotions I brought with me.

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January 23, 2019 at 11:53am

#950285

‘Idál (Justice), 5 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Wednesday January 23, 2019

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

How different was your life one year ago? How different do you imagine your life will be one year from today?

Today I'm living in a one-bedroom apartment instead of a two-bedroom. I have a new pair of eyeglasses. I'm somewhat happier most of the time, although I still get a bit depressed at, apparently, random intervals. AT least, I think they're random intervals. I'm attempting to keep a log of when I get depress and why (I think) I'm depressed.

GROUP

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 2257: Use this quote in your post today: "Enthusiasm is the greatest asset in the world. Its potential value far surpasses money and power and influence."~ Og Mandino

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, enthusiasm means "a feeling of energetic interest in a particular subject or activity and a desire to be involved in it, or a subject that produces such a feeling"5. This means that an individual can be enthusiastic about money and/or power, without caring about anything else. Enthusiasm is wonderful if the individual can focus that enthusiasm on something else besides selfish purposes. If an individual is focused on achieving money or power, that person will eventually be disappointed because the wealth or power will eventually depart leaving the individual in a state of deep depression.

Enthusiasm, like all other spiritual attributes, needs to be focused on something that is productive to both the individual and humanity. If the focus is on purely material gain to the individual, it is unproductive and leads to disappointment and other negative emotions.

Enthusiasm
breathed into humanity
with the Breath of Life.

GROUP

Reading Medium, Obesssions, and Night Flowers

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Blog City - Every Blogger's Paradise.
#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 1864:"To succeed in life you need three things: a wish bone, a back bone and a funny bone." Reba McEntire Do you agree?

I agree with the list, except I think it's in the wrong order. The proper order should be funny bone, back bone, and wish bone. Having a sense of humor is one of the most important characteristic human beings have. Without a sense of humor and the ability to laugh at our own foibles

Footnotes
5 https://dictionary.cambridge.org/us/dictionary/english/enthusiasm

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January 22, 2019 at 11:58am

#950209

Fiḍál (Grace), 4 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Tuesday, January 22, 2019

FORUM

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

What is your preferred book reading medium? Kindle, computer screen, audiobook, or good old fashioned paper? How come?

Reading Medium

I'm happy with any medium I'm using. I don't think the reading medium matters as much as enjoying the book. Audiobooks are better for nonfiction instructions and spiritual scriptures, which don't have a lot descriptions about characters or their surroundings. The advantage to computer screens is that you can increase the magnification so that you can see the word better. It's important to find a medium that is conveint for the reader.

GROUP

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Blog City - Every Blogger's Paradise.
#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 1863: “The image in the mind’s eye. For me, it’s where the obsession began. It’s what keeps me going, it never fails to excite me.” -Martin Scorsese
What do you think of obsessions? As a creative writer, are you as happy as Martin Scorsese about your own obsessions?

Obsessions

Obsessions,
are dangerous,
they border on addiction
or mental illness.

Obsessive worry
distracts from solving
problems that individuals
encounter in their daily lives.

When a thoughts
begin interfering
with a person's daily life,
or interactions with humanity
they have crossed the line.

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I Have a Dream and Service to Humanity

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 2256: Night Flowers.

Night Flowers

My Grandmother and/or one of her friends grew moonflowers. They planted them along one along one side of the house or beside the garage. They always smelled so nice. Every time I smell a moonflower it makes me smile because it brings back pleasant memories.

"Moonflower"

Moonflower bloom on the ebony boughs of night,
The leaves of your tree are the sparkling starlight,
The color of y our blossom is the pure silver-white,
Reflection of golden sunlight.

Moonflower born out of night's dark womb,
When the distant sun sets your bud to bloom,
Through each passing phase you larger loom,
Until your silver blossom becomes a full moon.

Moonflower bloom on night's twinkling tree,
Your crescent-shaped bud opens slowing for me,
Through each phase of life passes your tree,
Revealing in its changing blossom reality.

Moonflower bloom on night's glittering tree,
Your crescent-shapes blossom closes slowly for me,
Through each passing phase you obey death's decree,
As through the passing nights this life you flee.

Moonflower reborn out of night's womb,
As the distant sun sets a new bud to bloom,
Through each passing phase it larger looms,
Until its silver blossom becomes a full moon.

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January 21, 2019 at 1:25pm

#950138

Kamál (Perfection), 3 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Monday, January 21, 2019
Martin Luther King Day

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

Today in the US is Martin Luther King Day, a federal holiday celebrating the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., a civil rights activist best known for advancing civil rights through nonviolence and civil disobedience. In August of 1953, King delivered his famous speech “I Have a Dream” calling for civil and economic equality for all Americans and the end of racism. On this Motivational Monday, write a speech advocating for something you’re passionate about and use the phrase “I have a dream” in your entry.

I Have A Dream

I have a dream that humanity will look beyond this present darkness, and see the rays of love and unity that are shining above the mountains of our fears and segregation. I have a dream that humanity will open its eyes and see the forces of integration that are ascending into the firmament of our hopes as the forces of disintegration destroy the barriers between individuals, nations, and religions. I have a dream that humanity will open its ears to hear the voice of the Phoenix of Amity, as it rises from the ashes of this transitional era bringing with it an age of unity and peace.

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Contemplating a Trip in Time

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

DAY 2255: Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Let this quote inspire your blog entry: "Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service." Martin Luther King, Jr.

Service To Humanity

Service is the best way to determine the greatness of anyone. The issues that come up in service is, who is that service dedicated to. Is the service one is performing dedicated to humanity, the individual's concept of the Almighty Creator, to increasing the individual's material wealth, to building the person's ego, or to blind following of a superstition? The highest service an individual can perform is unselfish service to humanity.

There are numerous examples in history of people who have performed unselfish service to humanity. Some examples are Noah, Abraham, Moses, Krishna, The Buddha, Christ, Muhammad, The Bab, and Baha'u'llah; just to name a few. There are also many women who performed unselfish service to the human race Mary (the mother of Jesus), Mary Magdalene, Tahirih, and Maya Angelo--these are only a few examples. There are many examples of men and women giving unselfish service to humanity. An individual can serve humanity while performing their daily tasks and earning a living wage.

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January 20, 2019 at 11:02am

#950066

Jamál (Beauty), 2 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Sunday, January 20, 2019
World Religion Day

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Nature, Plans for 2019, Art and Society

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

What event from history do you wish you could have witnessed?

I think I answered this question in another writing.com blog, and in response to a prompt from another blog group. I'm not going to search for that response because this is a different year, a different blog group, and there is more than one historic event I would like to witness. The last time I answered this question I said I wanted to go back to April of 1863 to Baghdad, and to witness the Declaration of Baha'u'llah.

This is 2019, the two-hundredth anniversary of the Birth of the Bab, which will be celebrated in October. This year I would pick May of 1844 and the city of Shiraz where the Bab Declared His mission to Mullá Husayn. Mullá Husayn, was the first of the Letter of the Living (the Bab's disciples). The Bab, which means The Gate, was an independent Prophet and the forerunner of Baha'u'llah.

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January 19, 2019 at 4:55pm

#950010

Jalál (Glory), 1 Sulṭán (Sovereignty) 175 B.E. - Saturday, January 19, 2019
Feast of Sulṭán

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WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

Find a piece of nature that you can hold in your hand (leaf, twig, rock, berry, etc). Describe it as closely and carefully as you can.

Nature

I live in Las Vegas. My neighborhood isn't on the outskirts of the city where nature runs rampant and sparkles with beauty. I live in an urban neighborhood that contains only two types of living trees. Those trees are numerous palm trees and one sickly looking pine tree. There used to be an oak and an olive tree in the neighborhood, but they died. Outside my apartment is a queen palm (at least I think its a queen palm tree, for all I know it could be a king or some other type of palm tree). The tree outside my living room window has holes in the trunk, and, I suspect, mice and/or some other type of rodent or pest living in the trunk or at the roots.

Inspiration Reborn:
With Thanks to Mother Nature

After a dry spell
The floods come without warning.

Clouds gather
On the far horizon
blessing the mountains with rain.

The purifying waters
Wash fertile soil into the valley,
and destroy earthen dams.

GROUP

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#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 1861: Have you set a writing plan for 2019? If not why not? Do you feel planning makes you more productive or less productive?

Plans for 2019

I have a writing plan for 2019! It consist of editing and coping some of my older poems to "Poem Experiments" , "Devotional Poetry" , and "Memories of Snow" . Writing 200 new poems to celebrate the Bicentenary of the Birth of the Bab and placing those in "Bicentenary Poems and Prose" . Entering contests for "I Write in 2019" , placing most of my contest entries in "Snow's Writing for 2019, 2020, & Beyond" , responding to "~ The Poet's Place Cafe~" posts, and editing two news letters a month. If I get a chance, I will respond to some of the prompt posted in "30-Day Blogging Challenge ON HIATUS" , "Blogging Circle of Friends Prompt Forum" , and "Blog City Prompt Forum" .

GROUP

Fun Fact Friday: Two Monuments to Love Built in India

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#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

Day 2253: Art, freedom and creativity will change society faster than politics. Victor Pinchuk
What do you think? Can creativity change society?

Yes, art, freedom, and creativity can change society. Creativity is a spiritual attribute which every human being has. Some of us use it to write poems, some paint pictures, and others in other ways. Many artist and writers today are using their creativity to point out the injustices that are prevalent in society while other are relearning the arts of their native cultures. All of these artist and writers are accessing the creativity that was one of the divine attributes God breathed into humanity at its creation.

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January 18, 2019 at 10:47pm

#949959

Istiqlál (Independence), 19 Sharaf (Honor) 175 B.E. - Friday January 18, 2019

GROUP

(E)
A group for WDC bloggers.
#1901868 by Lyn's a sly fox

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(E)
Blog City - Every Blogger's Paradise.
#1972895 by Lyn's a sly fox

It's Friday funnie or factual Friday It's your blog write about one or the other. If you want to share something funny for Friday or if you want to discuss a fact you discovered that might be helpful to us. Have fun..

Monuments to Love

Taj Mahal

Built
by an emperor
for his queen!

This 17^th century
white marble tomb
stands

a symbol of
both India and
erotic love.

Lotus Temple

Built
by the Baha'is
for the people of the world!

This 20^th century
white marble temple
stands

a symbol of
both India and
spiritual love.

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January 18, 2019 at 12:05pm

#949929

Friday Food Entry

Istiqlál (Independence), 19 Sharaf (Honor) 175 B.E. - Friday January 18, 2019

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Thursday Thoughts on Capricorn

(13+)
WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

How much do you know about food waste in your country? Spend some time researching this issue and share a fact you learned. How conscious of your access to food are you and in what ways can you be more responsible for reducing your own food waste?

At the Food Bank

(ASR)
We are united in our poverty
#2070140 by Prosperous Snow celebrating

My experience with the prevention of food waste is on a more personal level. As a Senior Citizen, living on a fixed income, I have to get part of my monthly food from food banks. Fortunately, there is a Senior Citizens commodities program that gives anyone over 60, who needs it, two bags of food a month. These bags include canned goods, milk, cheese, cereal, and some type of canned meat. In addition to the Commodities program, there are food banks that take donations from supermarkets and other places that sell to the public. I know that Starbucks donates some of the food they do not sell to the food banks.

One of the grocery stories has "Manger's Specials" on meat that is close to the sell by date. The price is cut in half. Another supermarket has buy one and get one free on items that are close to the sell by date. One thing I have learned about the "sell by date" is that many food items, especially canned goods, do not spoil if the sell by date is past. The sell by date, on canned goods, appears (to me) to be the day they taste best when used by, and after that date they are still editable.

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January 17, 2019 at 9:59am

#949831

Istijlál (Majesty), 18 Sharaf (Honor) 175 B.E. - Thursday, January 17, 2018

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Midweek Reflections on Managing Stress

(13+)
WDC's Longest Running Blog Competition - Hiatus
#1786069 by Fivesixer

Do a bit of research on your Zodiac Sign. What are the associated characteristics of people with your sign and how do you exhibit those characteristics? https://www.horoscope.com/zodiac-signs

I was born
on a cold December night
in Oklahoma.

A Capricorn,
whose fate
the stars do not dictate.

If I read my horoscope,
it is either
for a laugh,
or to goose my muse.

Detail-oriented bordering on obsessive compulsive, especially when it comes to rhythm and rhyme.

Intelligent: No argument or smart ass remark here.

Hardworking: I think this should be changed to hard-wording, because I love to discover new word, similes, and metaphors.

Element: Earth - Of course, I was born on Earth, if I were born on Mars I would expect my element to be Mars.

Polarity: Negative - I suppose this could explain the depression I sometimes descend into. Under normal conditions (whatever normal conditions are) I'm a half-way positive person; especially when the sun is shining or there is a full moon.

Quality: Cardinal - I hope this does not refer to my singing voice. I'm tone deaf, and can't carry a tune in a silk handkerchief.

Ruling Planet: Saturn - Sounds like a nice place to visit, but I'm not sure I would want to live there.

Ruling House: Tenth - I haven't lived in ten houses yet. In Blackwell, Oklahoma, I lived in two. Since moving to Las Vegas I've lived in five houses.

Spirit Color: Dark blue - Traditionally blue is the color of a healthy soul. I don't know how dark a blue my soul is, at present. I suspect that the darker the blue, the healthier the soul. All though the opposite could be just as true.

Lucky Gem: lapis lazuli - I like the crystal blue color of the stone. This stone is supposed to help with good judgement and wisdom, so it is a stone I would wear or carry with me just to see if it does help in these areas.

Flower: Pansy - I think pansies are pretty flowers. However, I prefer either roses or hyacinth.

Love Match: Virgo - I don't think I've ever dated a Virgo. In fact, I've never heard the pickup line "What's your sign?"

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January 16, 2019 at 11:04am

#949776

‘Idál (Justice), 17 Sharaf (Honor) 175 B.E. - Wednesday, January 16, 2019

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