Part Two ~ A Course In Miracles
Miracles happened at Touchstones. Michael followed an enriched nutrition program that I prescribed. He spent long hours on the deck which stretched out near a musical little stream that flowed through our woods. He read, wrote in his journal and recovered. He gained weight and his strength fully returned. Within only a few weeks I found Michael working in the gardens and landscaping. Muscle tone was returning to his arms and legs. This is not something that usually happens with Muscular Dystrophy. One day I came home to find him carrying large rocks (Michael called them boulders) that weighed at least 40 pounds. He began working at Bridgeway as a “fifth step” volunteer and assumed an important role in my regular spiritual retreats for patients and alumni. Counselors were calling him to meet with patients who were deeply distressed and difficult to reach. Michael became active in weekend “Gatherings of Men” at Touchstones that I had been leading for some time. It was not long before he had a rather large following of people who were moved by his deep spiritual messages of love, hope and forgiveness. I was fast becoming his student rather than teacher. The beliefs that he passed on were entirely inclusive. They mixed his Baptist upbringing (Michael’s father was a pastor), Catholic teachings (he converted to Roman Catholicism), Native American spirituality and Buddhism. He had a deep belief in angels and a sense of connection with eternity. He spoke with such conviction that people were immediately drawn to him.
Months passed and I began to long for my personal space, privacy and solitude that Touchstones had provided prior to Michael’s arrival. He was doing so well and it was time to move on. We had some discussions about the subject, and ultimately, he moved to a mountain retreat where he was an assistant to a local minister. I soon relocated to a small house in town closer to the treatment center and life went on.
Michael became an occasional visitor. He spent some time at Corrine and David Gerwe’s home in Saluda, NC. He and his parents had reconciled after years of misunderstanding. Michael left the mountains to spend time at home with them in order to heal family wounds. The truth is that his health was beginning to decline. He called one day to ask for a weekend with me and I agreed. Several of his followers had been asking for him and it seemed like a good time to make connections with them. I was surprised when he said that he was too weak to see them. One of the young men was so desperate for his counsel that I pressed him. Michael was very fond of the boy and agreed to have a session. His arrival at my house on Friday was sobering. Michael was practically skin and bones. Most of his weekend was spent sleeping on my sofa. We talked about Touchstones and how well he had recovered there. His voice was weak and his limbs were shaky.
I went to another part of town to pick up Jason, Michael’s student, on Sunday. Jason was excited about seeing Michael and had developed what seemed to be dozens of spiritual questions for discussion. I explained that Michael was not well and tried to prepare him for what he would find when we arrived at the house. Jason was undaunted. Michael was sitting on the couch with an Indian blanket around his shoulders when we arrived. He glanced up at Jason and smiled. We exchanged some greetings and Michael remained silent. Jason began to ask some questions that were important to him. Michael gestured with his hand to stop and then put his finger to his lips. He struggled to his feet and Jason rose with him. Michael put his shaky hand on Jason’s shoulder and said “the only information you need is that you are loved”. He sat back on the couch, lay down and covered himself with his blanket. He said “Goodbye, Jason”, and we left. I immediately began to apologize to the young man who had expected deep conversations filled with wisdom and direction. Jason stopped me and said this…"Michael's right, Bob! That IS the only information I need…and it's the only information that you need too”. Nothing else was said. I dropped him off and returned to my place. Michael was asleep. I had to leave early for work in the morning and when I came home for lunch he had already left for his parent’s house. He left a short note thanking me for the weekend and asked if he could come back in a couple of weeks.
