Once Upon a Tomorrow – A Children’s Book About Progressive Revelation

The Australian Baha’i Publishing Trust has released a new children’s book titled Once Upon a Tomorrow. Written by Mehrnoosh Vejdani Watson, it provides a nuanced look at progressive revelation for all ages.

We were deepened saddened to hear of Merhnoosh’s passing during the final stages of this book’s publication and we’re grateful to her daughter, Ariana, for answering these interview questions on behalf of her cherished mother.

Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself?

I should start by saying that I (Ariana) am writing this as the daughter of the author rather than the author herself. My mother, Mehrnoosh, who both wrote and illustrated this book, passed away while the book was in the final stage of production at the printer. I wish she could have answered these questions herself, but perhaps it’s good that I am doing this instead because I can start by sharing some of the wonderful things about her that she was too humble to say about herself:

Mehrnoosh dedicated her entire adult life to children, parents, and teachers. She had over 30 years of experience in the field of education, both as an educational and parenting consultant and as a classroom teacher in early childhood and elementary settings across public and independent schools. Education was truly her calling.

Over the course of her 30+ year career she ran a preschool for the arts, taught art, and spent over 25 years as a general classroom teacher (kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grades) in one of the top public-school systems in the U.S. In addition to her teaching work, Mehrnoosh maintained an active parent consulting practice for over 15 years, both in private practice and for a national agency, the then-leading provider of corporate work-life services where she advised employees of Fortune 500 Companies. In her practice she focused on supporting and coaching parents to address a range of behavioural, social-emotional, and educational challenges. She was also a certified Mindfulness instructor, which added an important dimension to her work with both children and parents.

Merhnoosh wove together strands of many educational philosophies and practices, with formal training in Montessori, Reggio Emilia, Waldorf/Rudolph Steiner, Suzuki, and the Anisa Model for Education, into a coherent vision of the child and a holistic approach to teaching and parenting. Baha’i teachings created the foundation of her approach: every child is inherently noble, with infinite capacity. She had a soulful love of nature and consistently integrated nature and learning in ways that were ahead of her time—she recognized the nature deficiency that exists among today’s children and found all kinds of exciting and engaging ways to spark a lifelong love of nature in as many children as she could.

She also had a deep love for children’s literature, consistently seeking out beautiful books that leave readers filled with wonder and awe—her bookshelf was always a treasure mine to peruse. She was absolutely passionate about teaching through literature, and—in her own words—”found endless inspiration in the way young people can grasp complex themes and metaphors when engaged in meaningful discussions with adults who believe in their limitless potential.”

Although she did not seek recognition, I’d also like to mention a few ways that Mehrnoosh’s work was recognized for its incredible impact. Her classroom was profiled in university graduate classes as a model for the way she utilized environment as a teaching partner. She mentored student-teachers who were willing to expand their minds about the possibilities of what education could be. She was one of 10 educators featured by the WGBH Education Foundation in a series of social studies videos that were aired on the Annenberg channel and used for graduate-level teacher training in universities across the United States for over two decades. Mehrnoosh’s work was profiled in the Boston Globe and featured briefly in at least two books about education: Education on Trial by Nat Rutstein, and The Importance of Being Little by Erika Christakis. The latter author described her as being a “preternaturally gifted teacher” and that phrase has always stuck with me, because I can’t think of a better way to describe her natural talent working with children.

Beyond her professional life, I can testify to the fact that Mehrnoosh was also an incredible parent. I cannot begin to describe what a profound impact she had on me as my mother and what a guiding force she was, from my earliest memories throughout adulthood and most recently helping me work with my own children. I also want to add that she fearlessly challenged the status quo when she believed better was possible, especially when it came to children.

Can you please tell us a little bit about Once Upon a Tomorrow?

Once Upon a Tomorrow is a story that carries the reader through the arc of time to meet the world’s great spiritual Teachers as each receives revelation from God and plants a spiritual seed. As described on the jacket cover, it’s a book about humanity’s shared history, present, and future. It focuses on the spiritual truths that unite the world’s great religions—the core messages that unite us all rather than divide us. The writing itself is poetic, the story is told in the language of metaphor. I could go into more detail analyzing the metaphors, because I got really excited about it while reading, but I don’t want to take away from the experience of reading it yourself and seeing what you glean from it.

What inspired you to create this book? 

To answer this question, I’m going to pull in some of Mehrnoosh’s own reflections:

“The world is too beautiful to be divided. Humanity is too powerfully destined for unimaginable cohesion and harmony to be polarized against itself!

“None of us is a stranger to the anxiety of the soul when we witness conflict and division, or worse, when we ourselves play any part in spreading negative energy or toxic fumes of division. With the help of many forms of media, we are aware that political unrest, international conflicts and wars, partisan bickering, and religious, ethnic, and racial prejudice and discrimination are on the rise across the globe. And we feel the impact of these negative forces as they touch our lives directly or indirectly.

“But the good news is that humanity’s collective consciousness and aspiration for peace and justice has been climbing to historic heights. Nongovernmental agencies and civil society organizations are addressing issues related to human rights and freedoms of all kinds. They work to raise global awareness and bring together resources to meet the needs of affected communities.

“The youth around the world, who are greatly impacted by the dysfunctionality of our worldwide systems, are particularly arising with awareness and commitment to demand new solutions—from themselves and from older generations who are in power. A great number of religious leaders are also recognizing their historic roles in creating division within society. As a result, these leaders, in dialogue with each other, are beginning to contribute to the creation of a new narrative and vision for possibility.

“As outlined in The Power of Story: ‘Narratives tell us what is happening in our world, what’s at stake, and create or expand boundaries around what’s possible. As America [has reached] its 250^th anniversary, narratives of division are dominant: left versus right, urban versus rural, one race against another.’ But what if the divisions we see—not just in America, but all over the world—’can be understood as the product of stories—deeply ingrained narratives we have collectively accepted that shape how we understand ourselves and each other? What if changing those narratives could reshape the future of our [world]?’

“Once Upon a Tomorrow is an individual’s contribution to that narrative for the sake of our children’s future. The initial seed for the idea was planted in my consciousness during a meditative moment at a mindfulness retreat for educators. It took root and spread its own branches in my mind and heart over a period of five years. During that time, it made known its force of presence so clearly that it moved me forward toward its illustration despite my lack of prior experience as a children’s book illustrator.”

Who is its audience?

Once Upon a Tomorrow is for children of all ages, beliefs, and backgrounds. Mehrnoosh believed that the best picture books were those that were quite layered in complexity, so that all ages who engage with the book can explore those layers of meaning and benefit from the process of reflection. This book can be used by children (ages 5-10) at home with their parents, in children’s classes, libraries, and school classrooms. It likewise has sophisticated layers of exploration for junior youth (ages 11-15), and she hoped it would be enjoyed by these older children independently, with their families, and as a supplemental material within the context of junior youth empowerment classes—especially those groups exploring the concept of progressive revelation. So really, it’s for children, junior youth, and adults who are young at heart!

The book also contains educational resources, including a vocabulary list and a very helpful set of guiding questions that can be used independently by older readers, or by a parent or teacher who is reading the book alongside younger children to help explore the concepts in depth.

Speaking from my own experience reading it, there was a lot to learn from the sacred scripture that were referenced in the book. And, as a parent and teacher of children’s classes, I am beyond excited about having this beautiful work as a resource for my own children and so many children with whom I interact. We need more high-quality children’s books that explore the core principles in which Baha’is believe, and I love that this book highlights universal concepts and the unity behind all religions, making it a wonderful read (or gift!) for any family who wants to explore spiritual concepts and history with their children.

What’s something you’ve learned in the process of making this book?

I wish Mehrnoosh could have answered this question herself. I know how excited she was to explore the themes of this story and the feelings of confirmation she experienced as she found more and more support in the sacred scripture of all the world’s religions for the concepts at the heart of this book.

One of the discoveries that she found most exciting centered on the trees in this book. Although the metaphor of the trees as divine revelation was always part of the story, Mehrnoosh grappled for a while with how the illustrations would work. As she explored the sacred scriptures, she started to discover that each of the major religions actually featured a different species of tree—a concept she had never particularly noticed in any of the sacred writings. The more she studied, the more she realized the remarkable similarities in the symbolism used and the importance of these trees to each major religion. She became excited about using the species themselves in the illustrations and realized it was also a very useful device for showing the diversity of these places around the world without visually depicting the Manifestations/prophets. She felt such confirmation about the tree as a powerful metaphorical tool and common thread through which to illustrate the concept of progressive revelation. I don’t want to give away too much more here, because I think it’s important to discover and explore the metaphors while reading the actual book, but it was a joy to watch this process unfold.

Perhaps a connection only visible in hindsight, Mehrnoosh also used trees and their leaves in her second-grade classroom to teach the concepts of diversity and unity very effectively. She conducted a powerful exercise (which is actually on film) that had a profound and lasting impact on children in her class and their families. Multiple parents have reached out to me since her death to tell me how much they still feel the influence of that work many years (some even 20 years!) since their children were in her classroom. So, I think it’s quite beautiful that she found another way, here in this book, to use metaphor from the natural world to teach children about unity.

What do you hope readers will take away with them?

I hope that readers will be inspired by a sense of connection and hopefulness for the unity that we have always shared (even when we as a people have not realized it or chosen to accept it). That while some of our differences are very real—and can be beautiful!—that we are much more alike than we are different. I also hope the book will increase readers’ interest in exploring the sacred writings of all religions and to understand the common truths we share and hold dear. And, that we all need to work together for a more peaceful, loving world.

Thank you, Ariana, for taking the time to share this with us!

You can purchase Once Upon a Tomorrow from a variety of book retailers including Bahaibooks.com.au in Australia and the US Baha’i Publishing Trust and Amazon.

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Sonjel Vreeland

In her innermost heart, Sonjel is a stay-at-home parent and a bookworm with a maxed out library card but professionally she is a museologist with a background in English Literature. She currently lives on Prince Edward Island, an isle in the shape of a smile on the eastern Canadian coast. Sonjel is a writer who loves to listen to jazz when she's driving at night.