Ayyám-i-Há celebrations and service projects

Toronto, Ont.

A mother shares how her children prepared to celebrate Ayyám-i-Há with their classmates at school.

Anis, Leili and I decided to talk about Ayyám-i-Há with their classmates at school. So, we printed 30 Ayyám-i-Há cards and wrote a quotation on the cards about love, and we stuck sweets to the card envelopes. The children took the envelopes with them to school and we prepared slides on Ayyám-i-Há that Anis presented in his class. In the morning as the kids were leaving for school, I sent this message to their classmates’ parents in our WhatsApp group chat:

Good morning everyone,

Today marks the start of Ayyám-i-Há, “Days of Ha,” four to five days which the Baha’is dedicate to spiritual preparation for the19 days of fasting that follow. The fast will conclude with the feast of Naw-Rúz, the Bahá’í and Persian New Year. These days of Ayyám-i-Há are a time to celebrate with hospitality, charity, service and gift-giving. Anis, Leili and I prepared cards and sweets for everyone in Anis’s class. Mindful of what is happening in the world, we decided to write a quotation about love in the cards.

Much love from us to you.

 

Sudbury (Flourmill neighbourhood ) and northern Ontario

A cohort of youth from the Flourmill neighbourhood in Sudbury advanced in their study of Ruhi Book 2, along with youth from outside Sudbury. They decorated the space, had Ayyám-i-Há themed charades, made pottery, wrote a song and even had a piñata. It was an atmosphere of great jubilance.

 

North Bay, Ont.

A junior youth group from North Bay, in the spirit of generosity and giving at this time of year, raised $565 for a fundraising event called “Coldest Night of the Year.” Today, they partook in a 2km walk in the snow (part of this event), had cookies, hot chocolate and presents.

 

Kingston Frontenac cluster, Ont.

As part of the Kingston Frontenac cluster’s Ayyám-i-Há celebrations, the community organized a sock drive for Martha’s Table, which is a community centre that provides nutritious meals as well as a drop-in centre for those in need of companionship and support.

The community was able to fill the back of a van with bags of socks and gently used winter coats to donate to the centre, which will help some of our city’s most vulnerable.

Quebec City, Que.

 

Montreal, Que. (Notre-Dame-de-Grâce and Côte-des-Neiges neighbourhoods)

Young families in Montreal gather to sing and play for an outdoor Ayyám-i-Há celebration and then drop off food donations at their neighborhood pantry.

 

Montreal, Que. 

To celebrate Ayyám-i-Há, our Sunday Grade 1 Class (5–8 years of age) had a cookie baking Zoom class, and the teachers accompanied the children through the baking process. Two families from the younger children’s class were also invited to join us.

The children were given gift bags which contained a mason jar with all the dry ingredients for baking the cookies, a container of molasses, a rolling pin, a gingerbread man cookie cutter, a balloon, a tube of icing, and a children’s prayer book, Crown My Head by Elaheh Bose. The children were also sent a PDF document to print their gift labels for the cookies.

The class started with a song with the quote from Bahá’u’lláh on Ayyám-i-Há: “It behoveth the people of Bahá, throughout these days, to provide good cheer for themselves, their kindred and, beyond them, the poor and needy, and with joy and exultation to hail and glorify their Lord, to sing His praise and magnify His Name.”

Then, cookie-baking activities followed.

An Ayyám-i-Há story from YouTube was presented: https://youtu.be/ZaQB_OQF6ak, while waiting for the cookie dough to chill.

Three Ayyám-i-Há songs were also played while waiting for the cookies to bake, and the children coloured and labelled the gift tags. When the cookies finished baking, the children decorated them.

Altogether, fourteen regular students, four children from the younger children’s class, siblings and parents of our class participated in this joyous event.

 

Calgary, Alta. 

Calgary Bahá’ís drop off car loads of food at The Mustard Seed Shelter for individuals experiencing homelessness.

 

Edmonton, Alta. (Blue Quill neighbourhood)

Here are some photos of our celebration in the Blue Quill neighbourhood in Edmonton, Alberta. Families, youth, junior youth and children from the neighbourhood as well as the Bahá’í community attended. We had prayers, face painting (by the neighbourhood junior youth group as a service project), a live music performance as well as a clown performance all outdoors.

Thankfully the weather cooperated – usually an outdoor gathering in February is unheard of in Edmonton, but thankfully it was only -8°C and we had a nice crowd despite the slight chill! Having it in the neighborhood park made it so natural to have people passing by join us.

 

North Vancouver, B.C. (Capilano neighbourhood)

The Capilano neighbourhood in North Vancouver, BC. held an Ayyám-i-Há party. Seven families gathered to celebrate with a pizza dinner followed by a children’s dance party.

 

Vancouver, B.C. (Central Richmond neighbourhood)

Among a number of Ayyám-i-Há celebrations that took place in Central Richmond over the weekend, a junior youth group in the neighborhood organized a celebration for their families and friends at the neighborhood centre. They prepared stations with activities such as origami and card making, they led collective activities, and they learned to sing together in Chinese the quotation, “So powerful is the light of unity…” that was put to music by one of the local animators.

Throughout the last few days, the neighborhood children’s classes, junior youth groups, study circles and devotionals have all hosted Ayyám-i-Há celebrations with their families and friends to bring joy, love, and compassion to one another, and have infused the neighbourhood with a vibrant spirit.