One of my favorite quotes from ʻAbdu’l-Bahá inspired the music “Be the Wind,” created by one of the youth and musician extraordinaire, Eric Harper, during our 2022 Transformative Leadership for Youth seminar.
“O ye beloved of God! When the winds blow severely, rains fall fiercely, the lightning flashes, the thunder roars, the bolt descends and storms of trial become severe, grieve not; for after this storm, verily, the divine spring will arrive, the hills and fields will become verdant, the expanses of grain will joyfully wave, the earth will become covered with blossoms, the trees will be clothed with green garments and adorned with blossoms and fruits.” Bahá’í World Faith
We are preparing for the storm. The theme of this quote gives meaning and purpose to the storm and all that it brings. As wayfarers of the storm, we are encouraged to see the blessing found within the grief. During Laurie’s journey, I studied the five stages of grief from Elisabeth Kübler-Ross. An example of this has been one of the most stunning and profound insights from On Grief & Grieving, that it is within the stage of denial, where disbelief and shock are experienced, that one can discover grace. Denial protects us from the unimaginable. It is through the grace within denial that one comes to terms with reality and the ability to survive what initially feels impossible to endure (Kübler-Ross and Kessler, p. 10). Jadan begins his first week of chemotherapy on Monday. We have been told that chemo will be harsh and will have a multitude of ill side effects. It is our conviction to not only see the blessings within the storm but to be the blessings on this journey.
One of Albuquerque’s most beautiful qualities is its art community. A wide variety of art and artists provide local inspiration and beauty.
One of the recent spaces Jadan and Van found is GuitarVista. They buy/sell/trade various instruments to the community, including acoustic and electric guitars and mandolins. There, Jadan found a beautiful electric guitar that will feed his soul during the next few months. He has been playing it daily in preparation for next week.
There is one constant that will never change – that is change itself. Bella and Van have made their way to Colorado to visit family and friends in preparation for the new school year. Bella returns to her final year at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, while Vanny returns to Albuquerque to attend the University of New Mexico. As hard as it was, the girls said goodbye while all three gave Subi a squishy hug.
I have been preparing for the storm by photographing local hummingbirds. Our home has been surrounded with hummingbird feeders, which happily attract several species of hummingbirds. Becoming familiar with the Black-Chinned Hummingbird has been exciting, as it is new to me.
It has been especially inspiring to get to know the local juveniles. They seem more comfortable being stared at and photographed, even coming to my window when I am not outside with them. They also seem to know who fills their feeders. If I am a day or two late with fresh food, they seem to have quite a bit to say about it.
We miss Laurie every day.
A few days ago, we visited her grave, added orange flowers (her favorite color,) and said a prayer. A friend recently reminded me of how the souls in the next world continue to interact and assist us in this world through prayer and bounties. The thought of Laurie’s soul assisting and bestowing bounties upon Jadan during his cancer journey fills my heart with grace and gratitude. Jadan was very attached to Laurie in his younger years and loved her deeply as he grew older. I have no doubt that the power of love binds their souls together to this day.
“In the world of existence there is indeed no greater power than the power of love.“
ʻAbdu’l-Bahá
Soul Gardening: Jadan's Cancer Journey 