Piqued Curiosity

I became aware of the Bahá’í Faith during several animated conversations with a co-worker on an aircraft final assembly line in Wichita, KS. On the Bahá’í timeline, these exchanges occurred during the brief period between completion of the Nine Year Plan at Ridvan 1973 and the subsequent launch of the Five Year Plan at Naw-Rúz 1974.

At the time, I was 24 years old, married, two children, and less than two-years seniority in an industry notorious for its cyclical employment patterns.

I had recently enrolled in classes at Wichita State University for what would turn out to be an unsuccessful third run at getting an undergraduate degree.

A couple of years before I had read the excerpts from A Separate Reality: Further Conversations with Don Juan ¹ by Carlos Castañeda in the March 1971 issue of Esquire Magazine.

This sent me on a long reading adventure into literature about and by Native Americans. It also opened up my receptivity to learn more about a panoply of religious and nonreligious belief systems. Enter the Bahá’í Faith and the book: Thief in the Night by William Sears ²

It didn’t take. But my curiosity was piqued!