19 amazing souls arose to clear their lives to teach in MA

The cluster of South Middlesex County MA (A) launched its intensive phase of growth on April 12 and the following account of the preparation and planning will touch your heart as the adults learn from the children.

"The stage is set. There is no room left for vacillation. Multitudes hunger for the bread of life." ~Shoghi Effendi

Dear Friends,

We had a truly inspiring cluster reflection meeting yesterday! We prayed together, celebrated becoming an A cluster with a photo montage put together by AL, shared teaching stories, talked about what an intensive program of growth looks like, and what ours would look like. 19 amazing souls arose to clear their lives and to commit themselves to teaching during our first intensive circle of growth!

The children and junior youth presented the inspiring fruits of their morning's work--they had practiced introducing themselves and teaching the Faith, consulted about which of their friends they would teach the Faith to and come up with a list for this, and demonstrated a role play. Several of them had even spent time starting to learn Anna's presentation! Two of the children chose to join us as teachers during the expansion phase!

After lunch, we followed the children's lead and trained together about how to introduce ourselves when we are at someone's door, practiced Anna's presentation, and role-played inviting someone to become a Baha'i. Fortunately, a seeker walked in just before this to the M___’s home, and the group got shared Anna's presentation with them.

Afterwards, 15 adults and 2 children went door to door teaching in the neighborhood. In the space of 1.5 hours, we knocked on 112 doors, and 18 people expressed an interest in learning more and asked to be visited again! We will continue today--come join us! Remember, whether you like to visit door-to-door, return to homes that have already been visited, or like to arrange the visits with the neighbors, you can still be part of the collective effort--just come for prayers!

We will learn so much together! Here is a sample of lessons learned from our day of teaching yesterday:

· The importance of the comfort and confidence of the teacher - remembering the value of what you are offering

· The importance of not being afraid to ask follow-up questions

· "It wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be--in fact, it was fun!"

· "There is a great value in risking rejection--afterward, you have nothing left to fear--it's exhilarating!"

Loving regards,

Soma