This is very very interesting.

I think this is absolutely CRAZY. Its basically telling us to be persistent through this struggle and through our obedience to the faith they will likely receive acceptance for showing these qualities by those who may not have them. This almost puts parents in a more foreign position where you are leading by example which I never really would think about when referencing parents but more with strangers.

but what about the rules about joining into politics? of course this is referring to non partisan politics but nonetheless interesting to think about

This makes me think of when we do door to door we often try to find something to relate to the person answering the door with. Examples being like "omg my dog is extremely loud" or "I too went to that school" and with marriage you can relate to more and more people through this as well as set an example as someone leading a moral life for those you meet.

This reminds me of the upcoming chapters section in which it mentions how Baha'is cannot join into other religious organizations

Aside from the obvious importance of this one I think its funny to imagine how many people probably sent letters inviting ‘Abdu’l-Bahá to their weddings

this reminds me of something I think I heard Jared say once, that basically we are our own veils. It is a lot like how when you think you know the answer to something but you choose not to find out because you don't like the outcome.

I like this quote

This reminds me of the man who had attempted to quit smoking many times and felt great shame about it yet after approaching 'Abdu'l-Baha he talked to him about it and the response was basically that the men in Iran smoke way more to the point where their beards are filled with it and that it is nothing to worry about. The man experienced no shaming or a whole shpiel on "dont you know its super duper bad for you!!" nor a command to overcome his desire, just simply 'Abdu'l-Baha's understanding of the man and his loving kindness which he seemed to have grown so foreign of, that helped him fully lose the desire to smoke in the next few days after the conversation.

This reminds me that we cannot know others capacities as well as the story Katty told during orientation about how there was a guy that kept coming to her class(?) with his head down and he seemed to just be completely not for it but then in the end he was like, "I am totally for it". This quote helps motivate me to keep pushing through my challenges if it be in animating a JY group or doing home visits to know that I do not have to worry so hard if they are super invested in the book but more so if the effects the book is trying to convey are getting across and having an impact on them. This last part may seem misleading but I will explain it more in the deepening probably.

Alaska and the U.S. are separately listed, because they have separate spiritual assemblies and from what I'm told Hawaii also has its own spiritual assembly. I just thought that was cool

This reminds me of what Saam said in the last deepening about trying to naturally bring up the Baha'i faith with most people we meet if it be at a bus station or at a grocery store. This quote brought me a new perspective on spreading the faith, I don't have to prepare for an extremely formal speech each time I introduce the faith to anyone and I don't have to go into the conversation looking to see if they have JY.

This scenario reminds me of how we all are trying to look up to 'Abdu'l-Baha but even though we may not reach the same serenity and perfection in the cause as him it is still important that we strive to be like him. It also reminds me of the whole confirmation idea

Within my JY group I began feeling detached simply because we started with a huge amount of JY however two weeks later I ended up with only 2 being there and I felt completely distraught, although the number has boosted back up this quote definitely puts into perspective the situation and the importance of detachment.