Two weeks ago I spent 4 days with my Dad. In the past, visits with him have been stressful. I've felt barraged, attacked, and in a constant struggle with him. I was preparing myself for the worst, gritting my teeth against my promise to see him before I moved away. This time was decidedly different -- the best visit I've ever had with him. My dad was very calm, very comfortable with himself. No apologies over the situation he's in (company floundered, resulting in many creditors out to get him, recently divorced), no defense to all the attacking relatives over why he isn't doing X, Y, or Z. Just a calm resolve of his decisions. He responded to the attacks with love and curious questions, and if that failed, just removed himself. No residual hostility or animosity over the situation, just removed himself and happy to see them again a bit later. Needless to say, this made quite an impression on me. During one of our discussions, he talked about the healings he had done...how he'd cured the one waitress of her cancerous tumor, the other of her side pain, my grandma's bladder infection, and had recently asked my Grandpa's permission to pray for his sight to be restored. The changes he'd observed in his own health as he grew closer and closer to God -- his VERY BAD allergies haven't bothered him at all this season, one of the worst in years! Then... communing with relatives who have passed on. Forgiveness with his father. His first wife. The child she was carrying...he said that one was interesting; it was like getting a redirect signal. After trying a few times he ended up with my brother. All of these are things I've heard of before, but never that my Dad was experiencing it. Dad, whose mother thinks he's mentally ill because he's so eccentric. (He is not ill. He is eccentric. Very.) Dad, who thinks wearing the same clothes 4 days in a row "because they don't smell yet" is perfectly reasonable. Dad, who seemed surprised I should desire a glass, spoon, and fork when I arrived. Dad, whom I used to be very close to, but have drifted from in the past 5 years due to oddities like this... My Dad attributes all these things to his study of the Course in Miracles, which he has been doing for 10-15 years. I am very impressed to discover my father, someone who will openly talk to me about this, what it's like, how he learned it, and be delighted someone will listen and not think he's nuts. During this week, the book the "Celestine Prophecy" came up. I stumbled over my copy when I got home (hadn't seen it in a couple years), with a bookmark half-way through. I re-read from there to the end. Its description of how people would interact with others was exactly how my father was interacting with the people around him. Is he really that eccentric, or just very wise?