The Place by Jerry McGowan - HTML preview

Chapter Twelve: THE PLACE

Once you have found it, never let it go!

One day I was remembering back to my experiences with Eagle Man and his alternative ideas regarding spirituality. His commitment to the earth is evidence of his understanding of all life. I too have come to see our connection to nature to be the most direct connection to the Great Spirit available to us on this plane.

When we go into the forest and encounter trees, plants, and animals, we see them for what they are—nothing more. We don’t question their purpose or intent, and their actions are consistent with our expectations. Certainly, one may find a rogue animal that behaves differently, and that is more often due to the ill-health of the animal or to man’s intrusion into its space. So, why do we think we are so different from nature? Are we not part of nature too? Has our arrogance blinded us to see that each and every thing God creates is equal in His eyes?

How we see ourselves is often based on the feedback we get from others, by how they think we should be. How can any person or society tell you how or what you should be? I think that deprives us of our greatest gift—our individuality. Even though that restrictiveness may help to allay a person’s or society’s fears, our individuality is still paramount to our evolution.

Over time, and through many experiences in meditation, I have learned that my role here is simple: to be as Jerry as I can be. The key has been simply to learn what that was! I’m sure you’ve heard the expression, “Until you’ve walked a mile in someone else’s shoes, you cannot know what they feel.” That’s what I’m talking about here. We’re all different. That’s why I find it difficult to look outwardly for answers that, more often than not, lie within each one of us.

If my questions emanate from within, then perhaps that is the first place I should look for any answers I seek. When I have an issue for which I cannot find an answer, I will always sit and meditate before taking any other action. If the answer does not come, I will bounce the question off someone I know and trust. That person is always, first and foremost, my wife Beverly. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that she will always respond with MY best interest in mind. I said MY best interest and not OUR best interest because it is NOT our project; it is my project. I know she will always offer clarity.

Many people get stuck because they are constantly fed a diet of what works and what doesn’t work based on the societal belief, “what works for one of us, works for all of us,” and that simply is NOT the case. How could that be true if we are all different and one of a kind? Since we are all different, we should look at solutions put forth by others as that person’s truth and see them as alternative opinions for consideration after we seek answers from within ourselves. Many times they work beautifully in conjunction with our own inner thoughts and beliefs.

I thought back to what Ed told me on the day we parted: “If you need to ask where The Place is, then your journey is not yet over.”

I knew I was missing something. I had read in several different books about whether or not The Place exists at all. I remembered watching the movie Lost Horizon, based on the legend of Shangri-La. I remember the old Belgian priest who was more than two hundred years old and had lived in paradise most of his life. I had to ask myself if that was what I was looking for. Did a place like that really exist? Was it the answer to my question? I went into meditation one night with those thoughts in my head. I had learned so much, and yet the truth of The Place still occupied my thoughts. The answer still eluded me, or so I thought.

As I sat in the quietude of the evening, I began to see all the things I had learned from The Boys. Suddenly, as if a light went on inside my head, the answer came to me. Just as the distractions I endured during my meditations kept me from the mists, so the quest for something outside myself distracted me from the truth that lay within. Why did I think there was something outside myself that was better than the gift that lay within?

I began to smile as the light in the room became brighter. All this time I was looking for something more—something I did not possess. In the blink of an eye, I realized how wonderful my life had been and still was. I began to see it once again for the gift it was, not something I thought could be better. I was the gift, and I was The Place I had been searching for most of my life. All I needed to do was acknowledge it! The irony was clear: I had been telling everyone else about where to find the gift they are, and I never saw that place as THE PLACE—until then.

After many years of searching for something more, I had discovered my truth of The Place! You see, YOU are that Place, that magical, wondrous place that allows you to see the truth of who and how you are! Once you realize that you are the gift, you quickly become The Place you look forward to visiting on a daily basis. Getting to know the gift you are and sharing that gift with everyone you meet allows one to treat others as they would themselves. Understanding that is the way to change the consciousness of a planet, a universe, or a billion universes.

Let me share something with you so I don’t appear contradictory. I share this as my experience and nothing more. I am not proselytizing because I don’t believe in that. I am simply sharing what I have experienced in an effort to help everyone find the gift they are within themselves—nothing more. Perhaps none of what I have shared with you in this book will help you realize that gift. On the other hand, it might help reveal a path that you can use to help you uncover and discover your own Place.

I am not a doctor, psychologist, seer, fortune teller, or shaman. I am just a simple being who cares about all life and sees everything as equal. I respect all beliefs and find The Great Spirit, or God, to be understanding because He creates so many paths back to His glory. I know the world can be a better place with better beings in it.

As I mentioned in a previous chapter, there was a time after learning many truths about myself when I turned my back on those truths and sought to walk another path. The experiences I had during that time in my life were simply part of the education I needed in order to bring me to my current understanding. So many things have happened since this story began that I trust another book will be forthcoming to address that journey.

My dear friend, Ed McGaa (Eagle Man), still remains one of the most wonderful influences in my life. Ed helps thousands of people every year while spending much of his time at the Crazy Horse exhibit and sculpture in South Dakota, just west of Mount Rushmore. It is, in my humble opinion, one of the true wonders of the world. To have Ed there meeting tourists and marketing his goods is simply fitting because there he can share the gift of Mother Earth Spirituality with thousands around the world, while still making time for all of them on a daily basis. Ed McGaa is a hero to me, and I am deeply grateful to call him my friend and mentor.

My younger brother Bob now lives in Michigan with his family. He is and always will be one of the most beautiful spirits on this planet because his heart reaches out to every being he encounters. We have walked this walk together for more than sixty years, and if I could, I would gladly choose to walk this world with him for an eternity. I’m honored to call him my brother. He has moved my heart and the hearts of so many others, and he stands like a beacon in the night, assisting anyone who needs help to find their own light in the darkness.

I think it is important that I acknowledge my parents here as well. For me, they will always be the ones who initiated my awakening. If it were not for their open love and genuine caring, I don’t think my evolution would have happened as it did. I mentioned that my mom passed away some years earlier, and my dad passed away in 2006. My relationship with him was strained over the years because we were simply different, and my walk was not his first choice for an experience. I have always loved my dad and still do, even though my mother was my best friend in the family until Bob came of age. I remember heading back to Boston from Montana when my brother, Steve, called and mentioned that Dad was not doing very well. During my stay, I was at the hospital with my dad when our breakthrough finally happened. It was one of those moments you pray for but rarely see come to fruition. Ours happened in a torrent of tears and a love shared that will always be ours to remember.

My wife, Beverly, is the most wonder-filled being I have ever known. After being together for almost twenty years, I realize each and every day that I am still falling in love with her! Beverly is without a doubt the most untainted being I have ever met. Her heart is always open, and her mind is always clear. Her independence and free spirit help others learn to fly. I am in awe of her and so very grateful to have her in my life as my best friend.

Her love of nature is absolute. She spends much of her time as a photographer, and her photographs of nature are some of the most moving I have ever seen. I am honored she has chosen to walk her walk with me.

There is much left to share as my walk continues. Until the next time we meet, stay true to the gift you are and remember to take the time to go within to witness that gift first hand! The key is in REMEMBERING!

My favorite quote is this one I will leave with you. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin said something I first read in an article by Stephen Hawking. I have meditated on the idea several times in an effort to fully understand not only what he said, but also the full potential of his statement. The revelations and my interpretation will have to wait for another time, but this is what he said: “We are not human beings here for a spiritual experience; we are spirit beings here for a human experience.”

Yes, we are!

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