A DEAD-END BOOK COVER, A LAPIS LAZULI MOMENT, A SACRED SUNRISE

Written by Rolf Gompertz


Continued from page 1

The first thought that came this way was “lapis lazuli.” I had used lapis lazuli jewelry inrepparttar book on several significant occasions. The gold-speckled, deep-blue gemstone was highly prized in those times. Inrepparttar 127043 book, it is presented as a gift to Sarah,repparttar 127044 high priestess, duringrepparttar 127045 Sacred Marriage Rite. Elsewhere, I have Abraham giving Hagar a lapis lazuli necklace and matching earrings upon consummating their love. A lapis lazuli-colored scarf also figures meaningfully inrepparttar 127046 story.

“Yes,” I thought to myself. “That’s it! That’s my cover. A lapis lazuli necklace and earrings and a lapis lazuli scarf. A perfect metaphor forrepparttar 127047 full story.”

I was elated, exhilarated. I lovedrepparttar 127048 simplicity ofrepparttar 127049 idea,repparttar 127050 richness ofrepparttar 127051 deep-blue color,repparttar 127052 poetic symbolism.

But there was only one problem: I could not locate images ofrepparttar 127053 scarf and jewelry. I even had trouble locating an image of a lapis lazuli gemstone. Though I still had a couple of days left to findrepparttar 127054 right image, I now feared that my book would be canceled since I had nothing forrepparttar 127055 cover.

I paced nervously throughrepparttar 127056 house that evening, going back and forth between bedroom and study. I paused before my nature pictures which coverrepparttar 127057 walls, photographs that I had taken of sunrises and sunsets, lakes and oceans, trees, flowers and clouds. I don’t know why I turned to these images -- perhaps to relax me, to comfort me, to inspire me, which they have always done. Suddenly, my eyes fixed on a blazing red sunrise, with a white cloud spiraling intorepparttar 127058 sky, hovering over a dark lake.

Whenever I looked at that spectacular image, inrepparttar 127059 past, it always left me awed and breathless. This time, however,repparttar 127060 sunrise addressed me in a new way — its blazing colors spoke to me of erotic passions, its cloud spiraling upwards spoke to me ofrepparttar 127061 sacred andrepparttar 127062 heavenly, of dreams and dreamers,repparttar 127063 fiery pillar emerging out ofrepparttar 127064 darkness spoke to me ofrepparttar 127065 immanent and transcendent God,repparttar 127066 great Mystery,repparttar 127067 awesome Mystery,repparttar 127068 holy Mystery,repparttar 127069 loving Mystery in which we move and live and have our being.

Yes, this wasrepparttar 127070 cover! This was my cover! It had emerged fromrepparttar 127071 wondrous mystery ofrepparttar 127072 creative process. It reminded me, once more, to stay loose, remain flexible and trust that process, that Mystery, in all its creative variations.

Copyright 2002 Rolf Gompertz. All rights reserved.

Rolf Gompertz is the author of eight books, including, “Abraham, The Dreamer/An Erotic and Sacred Love Story,” a biblical paperback novel about the turbulent relationship between Abraham, his wife, Sarah, and “the other woman,” Hagar. It may be browsed and ordered online at www.iUniverse.com, www.amazon.com, from any bookstore or iUniverse’s toll free number 1/877/823-9235. Author contact: mailto rolfgompertz@yahoo.com


NDE - Throught the Tunnel

Written by Martin Brofman, Ph.D.


Continued from page 1

The ride was long, but I had nothing else to do but go for it. Finally,repparttar end ofrepparttar 127042 tunnel was in sight. I came out into a kind of space, a stillness, where there was a glow of energy addressing me. It was like a spark of life, energy glowing with intelligence, not in a human form, just pure consciousness. It seemed that some distance away, there was another spark just observingrepparttar 127043 scene.

I felt as though I were having an exit interview, something like, "Well, your trip is over now, so complete things in your consciousness about that, and we'll move on." I looked back and saw my life as I had lived it, completed my thoughts about things that had happened, understood a lot of things differently, and then expressed that I was ready. The Being began to move away. I began to follow, and then I paused. The Being quickly asked me whatrepparttar 127044 thought was that had just entered my consciousness. I had thought that it would be a shame for my daughters to have grown up without their father in their life. I had spent a large part of my life without my father in it, and I would have liked my daughters to not have to have experienced that. Anyway, I was ready to go. The Being said that because my reason for wanting to return was somebody outside myself, I would be allowed to return. Before I hadrepparttar 127045 chance to express that I didn't really want to return, there was a rapid, confused movement, something happened,repparttar 127046 other spark which had been "observing" was somehow a part of it, and then I was waking up in this body, in traumatic pain, with intense drama going on around me inrepparttar 127047 hospital. I felt as if I had just jumped into a movie that had been underway, but that I had not beenrepparttar 127048 one inrepparttar 127049 body before this moment. Because ofrepparttar 127050 trauma andrepparttar 127051 drama, my attention was directed to things happening inrepparttar 127052 physical world, andrepparttar 127053 memory of what had happened before was somehow obliterated. I had other things happening which were demanding my attention, and besides, I did not haverepparttar 127054 belief systems that would allow me to accept what had just happened.

Overrepparttar 127055 next year, I began to explore ideas and philosophies I had no experience of before. I read books like "Life After Life," and "Life After Death," and other writings which described what people called, "Near Death Experiences," and I began to remember what had happened. I sawrepparttar 127056 similarities to what others had experienced, and I knew then what had happened to me. I thought also ofrepparttar 127057 similarities to what we considerrepparttar 127058 "normal" birth process, where babies are born into bright lights and loud sounds and being slapped, and perhaps, their attention is so much directed to outer things that they forget their inner experiences just beforerepparttar 127059 process of being born.

From time to time, I meet others who have maderepparttar 127060 trip, and we compare notes. "What was it like for you?" One woman said that before, she was certain there would be a Being onrepparttar 127061 other side with a big book, looking at what she had and had not done, and making checks and crosses, good marks and bad marks. When she got torepparttar 127062 other side, there really was a Being there with a big book, just as she thought there would be. The only bad marks she got, though, were forrepparttar 127063 things that she hadn't done. Her only sin was self-denial.

My diagnosis on leavingrepparttar 127064 hospital was "Spinal Cord Tumor." There was no treatment possible. I was given one or two months to live, and I decided to do that living my new philosophy of "I'm glad I did." I decided to work on myself, working in my consciousness to releaserepparttar 127065 tumor. Later,repparttar 127066 doctors decided that they must have made a mistaken diagnosis.

But that's another story.

By Martin Brofman, Ph.D.



Martin Brofman, Ph.D. teacher, healer, author, architect of the Body Mirror System of Healing, is the Founder and Director of the Brofman Foundation for the Advancement of Healing.


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