recent ponderings

--i'm trying to understand love:
"To love another person is to see the face of God." --Victor Hugo

"Love the creatures for the sake of God and not for themselves."(Abdu'l-Baha, The Promulgation of Universal Peace, p. 92)

--motivation: where does it come from and how can it be created?

--culture clash: as a child of two cultures, i am realizing more and more that i don't understand either one of them. and i don't feel as though i belong to either one.

--the halo effect: essentially, we judge the "goodness" of people based on their outer appearance. the more attractive we find them, the more likely we are to assume that person is "good." what happens when we stop judging people based on their looks and start focusing on their Godly attributes?

--forgiveness: "The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong." --Gandhi

--success: society measures through career and wealth. which means absolutely nothing.
"A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they will never sit under." --Greek proverb

"Let deeds, not words, be your adorning." (Baha'u'llah, The Persian Hidden Words)