The Stream of Life

THE STREAM OF LIFE

The light came down upon the stream

A reflection of a surreal scene

One that rivals many a dream

 

The water babbles on either side

As it continues its downward slide

Taking many a twig for a one way ride

 

The cricket chirps for the setting sun

Singing its praise for a day well done

Sitting among them, this lowly one

 

The smell of life doth fill the air

A large stone, my only chair

For a brief moment, never a care

 

The joy that comes from such a place

Doth cause the heart to race

Of sorrows and trouble, there is no trace

 

When I was a child, the world was in trouble

Many a home was turned to rubble

Many a strong heart did stumble

 

Here I am years from then

The troubles come and surround again

So large tis beyond my ken

 

And yet throughout my life

Through peace and strife

This stream doth flow

the tranquility it doth show

waiting for us to know

that no matter where you go

a stream of peace within doth flow

-Shiidon, January 2009

I was reflecting on my time at the creek and how much I look forward to being there again this weekend.  You see, even thought it is in my back yard, I can only enjoy it on the weekends as the sun sets before I get home and rises after I leave.  The summer will be another story and I will be able to enjoy it more fully.  The events of this week have had a profound effect on many people that I have come in contact with.  There is tremendous hope in the air and a desire on the part of everyone that one person, President Barak Obama, can make a profound change in this world.  While he will and he will try, the burden is on the masses of society and for that to happen a profound change has to occur on the local level.  The greed and avarice, the corruption and disregard for our fellow man still lurks around every corner and is taking its toll.  Under the guise of layoffs and rising prices that are questionable in their intentions we as people are still under the yoke of materialism and business as usual.  Just in the automotive business, of which I work in, I have found price hikes and changes in supply levels that find no basis in reason.  When I was young, my father could go to the bank and ask for a loan.  There would be an assessmnet of his ability to repay as well as looking at his situation in general.  A judgment would then be made and sometimes it would involve risk.  Now, we are but numbers.  We are all given a credit rating that not only effects our ability to get a loan for a house or car but now effects what we will pay in insurance and other intrusive parts of our life that were not handled in such a way in the past.  When people become numbers we have lost what it is that makes us who we are.  It is similar to two doctors refering to a case rather than a person.  

As a Bahá'í I believe we must overcome this rampant materialism or focus on money and numbers.  We must look at each other as fellow human beings.  We need to realize that the business as usual mentality that has run our lives up to this point is the exact cause of the condition we find ourselves in.  Instead of taking risks financially as we have done for time imomorium, we need to take risks of reaching out and loving each other.  The similarities that can be found among any of the warring factions in the world are far more common than the differences.  I believe this vision of a world of humanity that loves each other as brothers and sisters is to come, but it must come upon the shoulders of those who worked hard for it in their life times.   This is a time when we need to build the foundation for those generations to come.  I am happy and at peace with things right now but have no illusions that there are trials and tribulations to come until we join hands together across this beautiful world that God has entrusted us with.