Settled-in --- I know the fact that I left my "home" country (US) when I was three and then moved from my (then) home country (Martinique) at 17, and then lived in different states gives me a different perspective on the meaning of a "home". Nonetheless, I remain puzzled at people's general inclination to dwell in the same place they have been used to. Granted, the prospect of moving somewhere new, especially a different country, is daunting, to say the least, especially when one has a family.

Yet we live in a time when exchanges between cultures and tradition are extremely exciting and inviting - and vastly more important than most things we spend our time on. As Baha'u'llah has so clearly pronounced, this is the age for the unity of all of humanity, with potentials for the advancement of civilization and global happiness that should rejoyce every discerning heart. How can, then, so many people be distracted by concepts of a fulfilling life that omits the general growth of the human family?

Still more surprising to me is the number of Baha'is, who are so much more keenly aware of the spiritual needs of our time than many, who have not yet left their country, especially since it is an obligation prescribed by the Prophet-Founder Himself, Baha'u'llah. Even in the rare cases where one cannot travel abroad as a pioneer for the Baha'i Faith, one is supposed to send someone else is her stead... The good news is, there are nonetheless vast numbers of people who are contributing to the rich exchanges worldwide - so much so that this global exchange is a defining characteristic of our time - despite the fact that numbers are still lacking...