Acknowledgements
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Though she chooses to remain anonymous for personal reasons, a deep gratitude goes out to my primary editor who saw me through this extensive project, start to finish, lending me her keen eyes, brilliant mind, humor and calm. This book would not have been without her. |
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Nicola came to the rescue at a critical time in my writing when the story had twisted itself into a knot and I, for the life of me, couldn't see my way out. Somehow, and I have no idea how, she gleaned what I was trying to say and was able to convey what changes had to be made. For this I am eternally grateful. |
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A special thank you to all the wonderful beta readers who so generously gave of their time to read my meandering thoughts: members of the Middletown Friends meeting, the Levi E. Coe Library's Senior Book Club, members of the Sunday Salon workshop with Joni B. Cole, family and friends—your insights and support have been golden. |
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The Upanishads is a compilation of ancient texts that's had a profound effect on me. Bringing the excerpts from the Upanishads into my novel I used three different English translations in order to formulate my own interpretations of the text. Since the wisdom held within the Upanishads is forever evolving new interpretations are accepted and welcomed. (Or so I've been told.) |
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In 2015, I had the great fortune to run into Vivek Kumar at a writer's program at Yale University. Vivek came to New Haven from India to attend a Yale poetry program. His interest in Sanskrit and in the Upanishads, along with his generosity, kindness and patience, was pivotal in guiding me with writing my quotes from the Upanishads, affirming my interpretations. |
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In researching this book, I was looking to include three distinctly different schools of philosophical thought: One through which to explore the Cosmos, one to explore the Earth, and one to explore the human experience of Cosmos and Earth. I wanted all three schools to be free of doctrine and to be supportive of the individual's personal questioning and exploration. I chose Hinduism through which to explore the Cosmos, Inca Shamanism to connect with Earth, and Quakerism for the human experience. Visiting a group of local Friends I felt so welcome and so at home that, in 2017, I became a Quaker. |
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I have been priveleged to study with the Q'ero Paqos since 2004, finding them to be one of the most generous, open-hearted and sincere people I have ever met. Spiritually it's my home amongst homes; the practice and the understanding that holds me and which I find practical, fundamental, and profound. For information on Inca Shamanism, please visit The Paqos. |
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In keeping with the theme of the book, I early on decided to match the names of the characters with their numerological personality traits. There are many websites that will calculate this. The one I used is Seven Reflections. |
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