What the hell was I doing in California?
Part One: Tents in the Desert
Long ago, in a time that is occurring simultaneously with our time right now, I stood on a bluff overlooking a shallow valley. Looking down into that valley, I saw a large grouping of tents. Though there was much flapping, the tents stood firmly against the desert wind, which was brisk, but not strong enough to cause a sand storm. The wind blew the smell of camels up to the bluff where I was standing. I moved my focus from the valley below me to the azure sky above. I said a little prayer then looked back down at the valley.
To my amazement, the city of tents had disappeared and I was now looking at a different encampment altogether. There were still tents, but they were different kinds of tents. They were conical and they were emblazoned with art work. Instead of camels, I smelled horses and the smell of buffalo meat cooking. Instead of a desert valley, I was looking down onto a vast sea of grass cut through by a small river, along which sat the encampment of teepees. I felt that the people down in both encampments were the same people, but in different bodies and different lives. I felt my connection to them was the same or very similar in both scenarios.
Was I looking into the future or the past? Or was I looking into a whole different…