Later that day, a group of Californians, including Helen Goodall, Ella Cooper…
bahaistories.com archive · Read original
Studio narration for this story is coming — it’ll be generated by the cloud-TTS pipeline (voice: auto-selected from the source author).
When in Bahá'í history
New York (today: New York, USA)
Later that day, a group of Californians, including Helen Goodall, Ella Cooper and Harriet Wise, arrived in New York to see ‘Abdu’l-Bahá. After a bath and dinner, the women took a taxi to the house where He was staying. Arriving, they stepped out of the cab to find ‘Abdu’l-Bahá sitting on the steps of the house awaiting them. "Very welcome! Very welcome! It is good that you have come", He said.
Source: Earl Redman, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá in Their Midst, p. 149
Collected from bahaistories.com (Subject: hospitality).
Discuss this story
For adults
- What stands out about 'Abdu'l-Bahá's response in this account?
- What might 'Abdu'l-Bahá's example ask of us in our own circumstances?
- Where do you see wisdom appearing — visibly or quietly — in this passage?
For teens
- If you were in 'Abdu'l-Bahá's place, what might you have done?
- What does this story teach about wisdom?
Reflection
- Sit quietly for a moment after reading. What does this story stir in you?
- If you could bring one quality from this story into your next conversation, what would it be?
- What single image from this story will stay with you?
Comprehension quiz
Which source is "Later that day, a group of Californians, including Helen Goodall, Ella Cooper…" drawn from?
Where does this story take place?
What period of Bahá'í history does this story belong to?
Which historical figure is featured most prominently in this story?
Which virtue does this story most clearly illustrate?
Cite this story
Various. *bahaistories.com archive*. https://bahaistories.com/subject/hospitality
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