On Ayyam-i-Ha Rushing to Conclusion: Fast Approaches
By george wesley dannells on Feb 28, 2007 in Baha'i Views
Ayyam-i-Ha is rushing to a conclusion again this year, and the fast is nigh upon us. -gw
Happy Ayyam-i-ha, all you crazy Baha’is. I’ve stopped calling this holiday the Baha’i Christmas and am now calling it the Baha’i Mardi Gras, minus the beads…+
Happy Ayyam-i-Ha! The party went well. … Afterwards we had a short interfaith pray service. Allen read from the Koran (he’s not Muslim). Bennet and I read from Baha’i writings, Upendo read from Baha’i writings in Kiswahili (she’s not Baha’i) and Amber and Emmanuel read from the Bible.+
Peacefulcore, “Happy Ayyam-i-Ha,” the joys of being a Peace Corps volunteer math teacher in Tanzania
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Well, the first day of Ayyam-i-Ha is concluded. This is nearly my favorite time of year–especially when there are such wonderful events as are going on this week. Tonight, I left work early and went to have dinner with my parents and several Baha’i friends–we spent most of the time just laughing hysterically, and those are the best kind of evenings anyway.
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But it was last night that was beautiful. After a few months of intense planning, the Baha’is of Albany, having teamed up with the Jewish community of Temple Israel, pulled off a tremendous victory: a multicultural benefit concert that raised more than $1,500 to benefit the Food Pantries for the Capital District. The best part was the extraordinary teamwork between people of both faiths–there we were, in a conservative Jewish synagogue, and the Baha’is were working as greeters, welcoming people in. In the lobby, both “Shalom” and “Allah’u'abha” rang out in greeting. Initially a little shy around one another, by evening’s end there was a shared pleasure and sense of being part of something much bigger than one evening’s fundraiser.+
Klezmer, reggae, gospel music sung by two members of a Baptist choir from across town, steel drums, and African dance. And complete openness and trust from both communities.
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Of course, it didn’t hurt my feelings at all to have a very tired Lila and a very happy Rhea (who is about 5, and enjoys playing big sister to Lila as much as I enjoy playing auntie) come join me in the front row while I ran the video camera for a while. What a great start to Ayyam-i-Ha: great music, great friendships-in-the-making, watching my friend Barry see one of his dearest wishes come true, and hanging out with two of my favorite wee girls. I’m grinning.+
{Re-posted with permission}
On Feb 28, 2007, Marco said:
Dear George,
I think you will like to watch this video.