Good Deeds for Naw-Rúz

It was the day before Naw-Rúz, the Bahá'í New Year. The Khan family was busy at the kitchen table. Mama had made the special spring soup. Baba was setting out the small bowls of sweets. The two children, Yasmín and Hadi, were drawing small pictures to put on the walls.

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After dinner, Mama said, "It is time for our Naw-Rúz custom. Each of us will tell one good deed we did this past year, and one new good deed we will try to do this year."

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Yasmín went first. She was eight. She said, "Last year I shared my snack with Maya at school every day for a week when she forgot her own. This year I am going to remember to ask her if she needs help with her math."

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Hadi was six. He said, "Last year I helped Mr. Brown next door carry his groceries from the car. This year I am going to help him plant the small garden in his front yard."

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Then Mama and Baba shared their own good deeds, one from the year past and one for the year ahead. Everyone listened. The candles flickered on the table.

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> Every new year is a chance to plant a new seed.

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That was Baba's saying. The four small new seeds were planted at the kitchen table that night. Some of them, by the next Naw-Rúz, would have grown into tall and beautiful plants.

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