Children & Youth: Agents of Change

It is 1:45 am. I am exhausted after a long, busy day. And yet, I have an urge to write. Since my brain hasn’t calmed down yet, I guess I’ll take a moment to share my thoughts. I spent much of my day today working with children and youth at the Children’s Theater Company program we are doing at the Baha’i Center. There is nothing more inspiring than watching children and youth step out, challenge themselves and realize that they can be agents of change in the world. My heart overflowed as I watched Emory, a 2-year-old little girl, emphatically proclaim that “So powerful is the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth!” That is a quote from the Baha’i Writings, authored by Baha’u’llah. Emory, however, is not from a Baha’i family. She learned the quote with the help of Mehr, who saw the amazing capacity of this tiny child and put it on blast for all of us to see. I also had the bounty of watching two youth work through their fear of singing in front of others and push through it in less than 30 minutes. I have worked with many adults who have developed mental obstacles around their voice and it usually becomes a long process involving weeks, months, even years to overcome. These two youths stepped out and plowed through their fear with amazing courage.

The kids in this program are all working on musicals that speak on real life issues and present us with an opportunity to reflect on the habits and beliefs we hold that contribute to the difficulties in the world. They are using their talents to create change and having a lot of fun in the process. They are developing their spiritual qualities and putting them into practice both at the program and at home. What an amazing opportunity to be of service! I have heard so many times that youth can move the world. Every time I get a chance to work with children and youth, they show me how true that statement is. When youth and children speak, they penetrate the hearts of adults in a way that grown-ups can rarely do. They help us to see things in a completely different way and their amazing capacity to take risks, challenge themselves and think out of the box inspires us to do and be more. These are the leaders of tomorrow. When we invest in them, we invest in the future of mankind. I am so thankful for the opportunity to learn from these incredible individuals while contributing to the further development of their gifts and talents. What a blessing!