It's Good to Look Up, Part II, " Road Trip"

My new Face Book friend and long ago business crony , Joan, took note of my blog post about looking up. Knowing that I didn't have a car in Chicago anymore, she offered to take me on a road trip to the Baha'i Temple in Wilmette for some high class, North Shore looking up.

We enjoyed the ride up relatively traffic-free Lake Shore Drive and followed the twists and turns of Sheridan Road. Rounding the corner to our destination we spotted the gleaming white temple rising up out of its lush gardens and boldly tiled fountains. I was reminded of how breathtaking the view of Baha'i was the first time I saw it many years ago on our way up north to a family party.

I knew absolutely nothing about the Baha'i temple or the religion, just that it was an unusually designed shrine to something or another occupying a prime piece of real estate overlooking Lake Michigan in all its splendor. Our visit that day was a revelation.

This photo does not do the edifice justice. You really need to go on the website http://www.bahaitemple.org/ and look at their pictures. I felt humbled and very tiny looking up at this cast concrete structure that took almost 50 years from conception to its completion in 1953. That includes eight years of perfecting the appropriate design for the building and 30 years of actual construction. The architect, Louis Bourgeois' intention was to create a feeling of light and unity and he certainly succeeded. The building is nine sided and its pillars carry the symbols of all the worlds' major religions. The interior dome , which soars 138 feet heavenward, is filled with almost too much light to capture it's beauty with an ordinary camera.

In a nutshell, Baha'i , which is a contraction of Baha' u 'llah, the name of the man who founded the religion in Persia (now Iran) in the mid 1800s, is a relatively new religion. It was introduced to the U.S. in 1893 and has grown here to over 155,000 members. The members can gather daily at 12:30 for prayer and on Sundays there is an a' Capella choir of its members. No clergy, no altars, no statues - just reminders everywhere of the oneness of mankind and the sacred nature of peace.

As we left, after watching an informative video and talking with one of the staff members, we looked around for a donation box - to leave a small thank you. There was none. The Baha'i accepts donations only from members. Very refreshing. You really need to visit in person to get the full effect of the beauty of this place. It will be worth your while.

On the way home we wandered around a bit, exploring roads leading to beaches and admiring the lovely Tudor homes, just plain ostentatious mansions and graceful painted lady Victorians. Our last stop was at the Evanston Arts Center which gave us an opportunity to once again "look up", this time at the lighthouse.

Then in Thelma and Louise mode, we tackled the southbound trip down the Drive - agreeing that the approach to the city from about Belmont, down to Michigan Avenue is one of our favorite and most stimulating drives in Chicago - Joan and I agree about a lot of stuff like that. One thing we agreed upon was that we had made good use of a beautiful day and that you really don't get a stiff neck by looking up.

Thank you, Joan.