Aelan Laef!

Suomeksi alempana! -------------- Showgraon is one of the neighborhoods of rural Luganville. From the school, it's about 20 minutes walk to Showgraon, straight across the plantation. The plantation is a vast area, filled with neat rows of coconut trees, the occasional truck paths and roads going through it and heeeeeaps of cows (buluk) who are rather scared of you and stare when you pass. I'm not allowed to walk in the plantation alone because it can be dangerous. No, it's not so much the threat of coconuts falling on your head (even if I do know a person who walked across the plantation wearing a helmet - hahahah!) or because of the crazy buluks attacking you. It's because the plantation is quite deserted - which makes it a "perfect" place for a crime like attacking/raping someone. Therefore -- boys can walk across it by themselves but girls - no. Of course, I didn't know anything about this, so there was a time when I'd go walk ther...

Last Wednesday was a special day at our school. It was the spring equinox, which also marks the Bahá'í New Year. Now, as our school IS called Rowhani Bahá'í School, it means we also celebrate Bahá'í Holy Days here. FUN! Back in the days, new year used to be celebrated in March. It wasn't until as late as 1582 when new year was moved by the Pope Gregory XIII to January 1st. Interestingly, the names of the months still carry this heritage of the old days. Think of October. Octo - 8, eight month of the year. November - novem is latin for nine.  December - 10th month of the year.  For Bahá'ís, the time of new year is always a very happy time, because it also means the end of a 19-day period of fasting - a time when we abstain from eating and drinking between sunrise and sunrise. It's a time when we remind our physical side that the spirit is the boss. We call the new year Naw Ruz, which means a new day. What a joyous day it wa...