Ayyam-i-Ha and Fast

One can think of the 4 or 5 day celebration of Ayyam-i-Ha as like an extended Christmas. We give gifts to family and friends, but also host get-togethers, all in good cheer. I spent two nights at a cafe owned by a group of Baha'is, named Guilindujes. On the first night, a Garifuna (ethnic group of Central America) ensemble performed for us, it was amazing! So the second evening I made a point to talk to the same guests. The first man I introduced myself to also spoke English and gifted me a necklace! Later, when the band came over to our tables with drums, a grandma invited me to dance with her and that's how the party really got started!

Now is the 19 day Baha'i month of fasting; no food or drink from sunrise to sunset. (In Alaska this is set to 6am to 6pm for obvious reason.) I haven't been able to observe the fast since my near-fatal accident 3.5 years ago. I hope to have the opportunity again one day. But in the same spirit of renunciation of self, I have personally decided to go the 19 days without eating chocolate or drinking coffee. It's harder for me than it sounds. For exmaple, yesterday I went to the supermarket and absent-mindedly bought myself a nutella and strawberry crepe to-go. Halfway through my walk home I realized I was carrying chocolate-containing food. So I gave it to my host sister.

We certainly do live in a materialistic society and here I'm trying more and more to generate my happiness from other sources, like my service. Speaking of which, today a student at the Colegio put a paper crown on my head, then two little girls bowed to me saying ¨your majesty¨.