A Late Bloomer

      I was raised in a middle class home in the suburbs of New York City.  My parents seldom took us to church and did not speak of God very often.  Most of my friends went to church every week and although I occasionally went with them, I didn’t feel it in my heart.  Fast forward 50 years.  When my father passed away and I inherited some money enabling us to retire early.  We jumped at the chance.
 When we decided to move to Maine and live in a very rural town, I had no idea how much my life would change.  We sold our house in one week and every hurdle we encountered was magically solved .  We laughed at it frequently because it was truly unbelievable! Now I understand that this was all happening for a reason beyond my comprehension.
A couple of years later I began to practice meditation. One day my husband handed me a book…”Autobiography of a Yogi” by Paramahansa Yogananda.
   For reasons that I did not comprehend, I was overly excited at the opportunity and after reading the book I signed up for the home lessons on the same day I finished the it. One year later I was initiated into Kriya Yoga.
   I relished every lesson that I received. This work has changed my whole life. I have found my center, my heart, and a deeper meaning of what life is really about. Waking up in the night I find myself incredibly calm, full of grace and appreciative of that time to reflect. Gone are the days of anxious thoughts racing thru my mind. My relationship with friends and my husband of 43 years have improved tenfold or more. I find that I am no longer defensive and more open to criticism.
   One of my first signs of change was when I was working at a nursing home. I was done with my lunch clean up and saw that another area was still full of dirty dishes. I began to gather them when a very irate co-worker stormed up beside me screaming that it was not my job to clean that table! Suddenly it was as if I was standing outside my body watching her screaming at me. Without a flinch I told her calmly that I didn’t mind helping being I was done with the other section. She continued to berate me. I saw others gathering, but I was unshakable. I finished the table and was promptly notified that the woman had been reported. The next day that same table was left dirty and when I started picking up the dishes that same woman came over and apologized and helped me clean up. My heart is simply full of love for all beings, great and small.
Since my Kriya initiation working toward Self Realization, I have had extraordinary experiences in meditation as well at random times in normal consciousness.
   I was asking Him to steer me toward a spiritual book that would help me and shortly thereafter someone referred me to ”The Rainmaker”. I ordered it immediately knowing that it was meant for me. Now that I am reading it, I am at times brought to tears by the stories of those experiences of OM Swami’s disciples.
   After ten years of practicing Yogananda’s work I have been told that one really needs living guru to work with to achieve all that this life can offer. I realize that it’s not practical for me to travel to India to meet Him, but perhaps there is a twinkling of a chance He will come to the US. What a wonderful blessing it would be! So every now and then I find myself whispering “Om Swami, Om Swami, Om Swami”. And I feel just wonderful.
                                                                 Thank you for allowing me to tell my story.