Bahá'ís in Hot Water
The fifty-two-degree Celsius heat at the mouth of the Liard River hot springs located in the Liard Hot Springs Provincial Park along the Alaska Highway draws a collection of like-minded strangers from around the world. Along the boardwalk, we said Hello, Bonjour, Hola and Guten Tag to fine folks.
At the Alpha pool, we tip-toed into the waist-high water and let the pungent scent of sulphur fill our nostrils. The water soothed our aching bones and settled us into a feeling of serenity.
The friendly banter among the bathers soon became an uplifting conversation about our pleasure to be there and a middle-aged man we'd met the day before in the campground suggested it was all God's work and all our thanks goes to Him. We agreed wholeheartedly. He engaged us with a full-length conversation about his relationship with God. We revealed to him that as Baha'is we feel the same. He was happy to speak with us about a Higher Power and his opinion that it is sometimes very difficult to speak with strangers about religion. He shared with us that God guides his daily duties as a father, a husband and a provider for his family. “My coming to the hot pool is play time for me and I get to meditate.” A mature couple sat next to us on the bench and joined in our conversation about receiving gifts from God, like this amazing hot pool and the open-hearted people drawn to it.
We left our new-found friends and returned to our campsite for breakfast. There we met a German couple who asked about the music notes on our bus. We got involved in an in-depth explanation of the Baha'i Faith. They joined us in singing the songs posted all around the bus and afterwards invited us to their campsite for more singing that evening.
Blessed is the Spot
Liard River Hotsprings Campground sign
In the hotsprings!
