Here's a story from Bill. I hope he doesn't mind that I posted it here.
Adventures of A Kalash Cab - Matt's Day of Desperate Decision As read to the "Invincible America Assembly", Saturday, April 17, 2010 Dear Friends -
As a student at MUM, I have driven a taxicab in St. Louis, Missouri on weekends and on school breaks, to earn extra income. On many occasions, I feel, Nature has placed auspicious people, or especiallly sweet and deserving people in my back seat. I have told all my customers about the Transcendental Meditation technique for quite some time now - either in casual conversation, or by referring them to my personal art website, <http://www.BillsArtBox.com>www.BillsArtBox.com, where they find many research studies and personal testimonies aboutTM. I consider the rest to be up to Nature, and am very happy not knowing the outcome of our conversations, other than the most important one -- that of their new awareness of the TM program.
Since I began the Invincible America course, I have noticed my "TM-telling" has taken on a greatly heightened vigor ... due often to the remarkable circumstances and timing that now lead my customers to my cab, which I secretly call "My Kalash Cab". Therefore, when I ventured out last week, I had just a small desire that my dives into Vedic raconteurism might also somehow produce some "concrete" response for my customers that would be known to me.
When I let a customer out in downtown St. Louis on Thursday morning, I immediately came in on an airport run. However this fare cancelled before I could even set out to pick them up. There was about three to five minutes in which I waited, almost coming in on a not-too distant order. But then I saw a faraway order appear on my screen, which seemed to beckon to me ... and which, when I came in on it also turned out to be going to the airport.
As I pulled up to this house, a young man was standing out front beside his luggage. I loaded his bags into my trunk, noting that this customer seemed deep in concern over some matter. Still in silence, this young man sat absorbed as we drove to the airport, until about half way there I asked him what airlines he was taking. His answer was one of the biggest surprises of my life. He said, "Well, I'm either going to American Airlines, to catch a flight to Hong Kong, or I am going to Hertz Rent A Car to pick up a car to drive to this crazy university in Iowa where they do tons of meditation." I didn't want to startle him, but the effect was marvelous when I then said, "I go to that university." He replied --in utter astonishment -- that the reason that he was so quiet was that he was trying to make a final decision as we drove along about going to his "appointment" in Hong Kong, or to instead come to Fairfield and take the TM-Sidhi program. In fact, he said, he was about to start calling his friends to take a survey on what they thought he should do when I had suddenly spoken up. It is an understatement to say that my customer was completely "blown away" by this whole thing. He even spent the next few minutes grilling me on what was the most popular restaurant in Fairfield where everyone went -- "Revelations", of course, though at first I said "Bonnie's Second Street Cafe" - and asked me how many cab drivers there were driving around in St. Louis who went to Maharishi University of Management. I answered, "Only one that I know of." When he was quite certain I wasn't either a spy or some kind of hallucination, he calmly took out his cell phone and dialed his airline. He said that he was catching a connecting flight to Hong Kong from St. Louis and would they please cancel the entire ticket. When he hung up, we then proceeded to Hertz Rent A Car.
As we were unloading the luggage at Hertz he was quiet again, though this time I felt quietly decided about his future. He told me that his name was Matt. As I carried the last of his bags to the curb, he checked the trunk. Then as we walked -- yes, impossibly -- past each other one more time, Matt said simply, "See you in the dome in July." And I, of course, in matched awe, said -- "Jai Guru Dev".
My reflections on this experience were heightened by the videotape which was chosen for us the morning I returned to the Invincible America Course. During this wonderful tape, a course participant noted how his own experiences seemed to be quite connected to the growth of the experiences of his fellow course participants. Maharishi seemed more pleased with this observation than I have ever heard him about anything.
I think that "Matt" and I, whenever we should meet again, could validate the existence of that shared connection which is passing now amongst us all -- in the super-fluid state of the coming age: the Age of Enlightenment on Earth.
