Category: Stories from the Heart Page 4 of 7

Apollo’s Cat Tale

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Guest Post by Gloria Lionz

I asked Jodi, a new friend, to take Apollo to the cat sitter’s office the morning I left for an Eckankar seminar in Minnesota recently. She was nervous about the task but sincerely wanted to help. My flight left earlier than they open. And he prefers spending more time here than there anytime.

So, Jodi agreed to load Apollo into his carrier mid-morning & take him to “Tiny’s.”  Easy peasy except for one thing: She’s brand new to cats.  

The Healing Sound of Music: Sammie’s Song

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Guest Post by Dennis Ernst

My head throbbed and my throat hurt so badly I could hardly swallow. The high fever sapped all my energy and made my world so blurred I could hardly make anything out. I was so sick that the rash that came with the fever was just a mild disturbance. Even though I wasn’t in school yet, my sister had brought home the rubella virus that was going around.

I laid on the couch in the living room, drifting in and out of sleep, wondering how long this was going to last or how long I could last. I was tired of being in this sick body and wanted to go back “Home”, the wonderful place I had come from before getting this body.

Sharing the “HU”

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Guest Post by Dennis Ernst

While attending a retreat at a remote location in the Oregon Coast Range, I had a unique opportunity to share the sacred mantra of “HU.” I had gotten up a dawn to take a walk before breakfast and hiked up a gravel road, in the early morning rain. The road wound its way along a creek for a half a mile before starting up a steep ridge. I noticed a variety of wildlife along the creek. Canadian geese, a duck, many birds and even a blacktail deer. A little later I saw an elk, feeding on the early spring grass along the brushy bank.

The Way of the Wanderer

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Guest Post by Paul Hillman

My mission:

“You must assist people using what they understand. Simple ideas for simple minds. Young things for young people, something fun, imaginative, maybe even a little silly. More complex ideas for highly intelligent people. Realistic things for people who are struggling.

“What you say must appeal to what they want or need at that exact moment. It has to offer them a solution to the problem they are experiencing. Then, people will respond and grow into a healthier, more spiritual life.”

“But how will I know what to say, Master?” I asked.

The Buzzing of the Bees

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Guest Post by Dennis Ernst

There are moments in life when you act on what you know and don’t think about it. That sense of knowingness trumps feeling and thinking even though it may not seem too logical at the time or make sense to anyone else. This kind of knowingness is often a reflection of your core values, who you are, and what you truly believe. Even though I was only four years old, the profound memory of a magical moment still resonates strongly with me.

3-Point Men

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Guest Post by Paul Baker

On the basketball court a line is drawn so that when a player shoots from behind that line 3 points are registered. In the mornings here in ZhongHo, Taiwan, I shoot at the basket with 3-pt. men.

On the opposite end of the court are women shooting baskets. They also dance to music while they shoot. 

A Most Wonderful and Mysterious Gift

Reading Time: 4 minutes

Guest Post by Jim Jackson

In late April of 2023, I received a phone call from Marlo Rees, the wife of one of my very best friends and decade-long senior doubles tennis partner. They had sold their home in Portland and moved to Santa Barbara in mid-2021. Frank Rees had suddenly passed on shortly thereafter.

Marlo told me she had been able to have contact with Frank since his transition, and was sure I would want to know. She also called to thank me for the “wonderful gift.” I had no idea what she was talking about, so I listened on.

A Return to Joy: How Sawyer Brown Helped Heal My Heart

Reading Time: 3 minutes

By Michael Avery

Before Sawyer Brown became famous, the band always stopped at the Douglas County Fair near my hometown on their whirlwind tour throughout Oregon and the Pacific Northwest. When I left the fair each year after hearing them play until well after midnight, one song always stayed with me—“The Walk.” Little did I know that, many years later, the song would facilitate a healing with my father. 

The Journey Back to Loving Ourselves

Reading Time: 4 minutes

By Michael Avery

When we glance back over our shoulder at the myriad events in our lives, some stand out for their solitary strangeness, others for their magic and mystery. They tug at our coattails, begging us to take another look with older, yet more discerning eyes. 

I’d been reflecting on a conversation from several years before regarding a dog and his unusual friend, when I suddenly realized it held a valuable lesson about self-love. 

In the Presence of Soul

Reading Time: 2 minutes

Guest Post by Robin Adams McBride

(Job Interview at an Alzheimer’s Home)

We approached the locked door, Vi and I. She pushed the security button. There was a loud click. She opened the door, and we stepped through into the world of the Alzheimer’s ward.

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