Packing a car is like a puzzle

The master behind this car-packing job credits years and years of doing puzzles.
If this doesn't win a world record, I'd like to see the packed car that did.
For the 1,800 miles we drove in three days we were actually comfortable. Our snacks were easy to reach, our overnight bags were right on top and there was leg room on the passenger's side. And, no, I didn't ride shot gun and let my Baba drive the whole way. The first day, I drove the full eight hours until we stopped in Lordsburg, NM. The second day we split a 14-hour drive, then stayed in the outskirts on the east side of San Antonio. That left about another eight hours to drive to Baton Rouge. It would have been less, but we hit the city right as day-before-Thanksgiving traffic let out.

So, if y'all ever need advice about how to cram a 2-door Honda Civic with all your belongings, or how to actually enjoy a cross country road trip on I-10 - through (gulp) Texas- you know where to reach the experts!

Written while groovin' to Changes by David Bowie (essential road trip music)

Top Ten Goodbye Songs

From somebody who has moved 14 times in 24 years, these are the top ten songs that express the tears, fears, aches and laughs that come with leaving or being left behind...

10. I Will Remember You; Sarah McLachlin
9. Time in a Bottle; Jim Croce
8. Send Me On My Way; Rusted Root
7. Leaving on a Jet Plane; Peter, Paul & Mary, John Denver, Chantal Kreviazuk, take your pick
6. Wild World; Cat Stevens
5. Gone 'til November; Wyclef Jean & Canibus
4. Na Na Hey Hey (Kiss Him Goodbye); Steam
3. The Promise; Tracy Chapman
2. Graduation (Forever Friends); Vitamin C
1. Good Riddance (Time of Your Life); Green Day

Feel free to add your own!

Neda's props

Dear Fam-lay,
The inspiration behind this blog is my sister Neda. During the past year while she served at Louhelen Baha'i School in Michigan, she posted pictures, updates and stories on her blog that she thought only my dad read. (But I read your posts too, Neda Sue!) Well, he was the only reader posting comments. So, at the risk of sounding hypocritical, please leave a shout out or add your two cents when you visit this page. If not, Neda will tell you how lonely blogging gets with a small audience. (No offense, Baba)

Naming this Blog

Dear Friends,
If you know about this blog, then most likely you know already about my upcoming adventure to Haifa, Israel to serve at the Bahá’í World Centre for two-and-a-half years.
This is a photo of the Seat of the Universal House of Justice, the center of the Administrative Order of the international Bahá’í community, that stands atop Mount Carmel in Haifa.

Coming up with a name for this blog, a medium to keep us connected and share the wonders of the Holy Land, wasn't easy.

So I turned to the words of Bahá’u’lláh.

Searching through the Writings on reference.bahai.org, I thought I'd never find an attribute or image fit for this unworthy blog, but then I read "the utterance of God is a lamp..." and "Say: He hath kindled the lamp of utterance, and feedeth it with the oil of wisdom and understanding..." and one of my favorites, "Verily God hath made adversity as a morning dew upon His green pasture, and a wick for His lamp which lighteth earth and heaven..."

Friends, though this blog will share all my encounters during these travels - from sights and sounds to new friends and learning experiences - I hope it will be enlightening and interactive, nonetheless.