Happy Naw Ruz (Baha’í New Year) to all of you!
I am taking the day off from work in observance of the Holy Day and catching a few moments to send you this update on the Fifita’s in PNG. Our family has had an eventful year filled with the ever-present joys of watching our sons grow, the spiritual upliftment of Pilgrimage and the challenges of advancing careers and studies.
Faizi (6) and Amin (18 months) have forged a strong bond as brothers and impress us daily with the new and wondrous things they are able to do. Faizi is now in Grade One and has settled in very well to his new class. He is now a confident reader, a high scorer in both math and spelling tests and was awarded this week by his teacher for his improving work habits. He celebrated his 6th birthday with his class on March 6th and helped Grandma to bake the chocolate-chip cookies which he shared with all of his classmates.
His greatest joys continue to be art and music and we have enrolled him in both private drawing and drumming lessons after school each week. He has a keen eye and often surprises us with what he is able to draw (see portraits below). His drumming skills are also improving and he is performing at an advanced level, although he apparently needs to build endurance. After his last lesson he reported, “I could only drum for seven minutes – my arms got too tired!”
Amin too is quite the performer and demonstrates a keen sense of rhythm through his incessant belly-shaking at the slightest hint of music. Amin has quite obviously caught the Milani ‘bug’ for dancing and can not sit still once he hears a catchy tune. He quite often dances along to Turkish belly-dancing music with his Baba (my father) and Grandma (my mum) when he spends the day with them. Thankfully he has been able to spend many days with them this year since they very generously offered to care for him whilst Vahid and I are at school and work. Amin, of course, loves it and so do we! We delight to hear of his daily adventures with Grandma, working in the garden, chasing the pets and even catching a lizard or two!
Amin and Faizi together are a joy to watch – they have such adoration for each other. Amin forever wants to involve himself in whatever Faizi is doing and Faizi is particularly patient with his sometimes-mischievous little brother. Vahid and I are truly blessed to have such beautiful and talented children.
In January of this year we had the unique opportunity to reflect on and give thanks for each and every one of the blessings in our life as Vahid and I went on a Pilgrimage to the Bahá’í Holy Places in Israel. Thanks, once again, to the generosity of my parents, we were able to leave the kids with them and just travel as a couple. We began the trip with a 3-day visit to Singapore which felt like a second honeymoon. We spent most of our time taking pleasure in the vibrant sights, delicious food and relative safety and freedom of Singapore (not to mention shopping!!). We also had the chance to get together briefly with my cousin Moujan and his beautiful family, who all live in Singapore – what a treat!
Following our Singapore sojourn, we set off for Haifa, Israel where we met with a group of more than 300 Bahá’ís from around the world to participate in a 9-day program of visits to places of great historical and spiritual significance to Bahá’ís. In addition to these visits, we were allowed much time to visit the Holy Shrines of the Bab and Bahá’u’lláh (the Forerunner and Founder of the Bahá’ì Faith and offer prayers for ourselves, our family, our friends and the world.
We were also fortunate to meet up with many good friends from around the world, including the Derakhshan’s from Australia, the Samimi-Moore’s from Alaska, Sam Ling from PNG, Mona Mossayeb from the US and Kalo Fakatou from Tonga. By the end of the Pilgrimage we had made many more friends from the far distant reaches of the globe.
Our travels allowed us to return home with renewed vigor to meet the challenges of the year ahead. For Vahid, this is his final year of Electrical Engineering studies – the consummation of 5 years of hard work, sacrifice and dedication on his part. His final year project will be focused on Control Systems in mass power generation and may involve an internship at Papua New Guinea’s largest hydro-electric power plant. As much as I would sincerely like to help him in his studies, my work and experience does not lend itself much to his field of interest. The most I can do is offer moral support!
My work with the International School of Lae has also developed further this year. I have finally moved on from Prep (Kindergarten) after 5 years and am now teaching Grade 3 – an age-group I am really enjoying. In addition to my teaching responsibilities, I continue to administrate the Junior Primary section of the school which, in the last year, has grown to include 22 staff and over 200 students.
The year ahead holds much challenge, promise and excitement. We are planning a trip for the kids and myself to the United States for a month this summer (June – July) and really looking forward to catching up with all of our American family and friends, many of whom we haven’t seen since our visit in 2003. Unfortunately, Vahid’s university schedule does not match with our school calendar so he will have some quiet time to focus on his project.
We hope and pray that the New Year holds many blessings for each and every one of you.
With warm Pacific greetings,
Nadia, Vahid, Faizi and Amin Fifita
Lae, Papua New Guinea
Faizi and Amin with the beautiful orchids at Singapore airport.
We took a free tour of Singapore including a ride on a traditional 'bumboat' along the Singapore River.
We took a free tour of Singapore including a ride on a traditional 'bumboat' along the Singapore River.
