Jose ATID LEIIA STEVENS 213what I can discover. He stood quietly for a moment, con-
sulting his deer guide.
Deer spoke: "You should be glad because you have
shown power. After all, you are realizing an old dream.
Did you forget? You've always wanted to see it rain or
snow in Death Valley. Now you have it. Can you enjoy it?
You can build more power by having your dream. That
will pave the way for the next step."
I guess I confused those chains for a reason, thought
Jose. My spirit self made sure I'd stick around enough to
enjoy it. I need to change my attitude. We have food and
supplies. I guess we'll just have to wait.
Two hours later, walking in the snow to the crest of the
rise, Lena and Jose looked out over the slick road as
snowflakes continued to fall silently and gently in the des-
ert. Suddenly a movement caught their eyes. Rounding a
bend and coming slowly down the road was the impossi-
ble. An old snowplow was working its way down from the
pass on this isolated rut of a road in the middle of no-
where—not a county machine, but a miner's snowplow.
The ride through the rugged snow-covered desert
mountains could not have been more beautiful. The old
convertible bumped and sloshed behind the snowplow for
miles, slow enough to deeply appreciate the experience.
Jose and Lena laughed at their own foolishness and mar-
veled at their exhilaration. The big picture always felt this
way.Let's review the principles of the shamanic approach so
that you can quickly recall the key points of this powerful
practice. Remember for starters that shamanism is an an-
cient, cross-cultural personal strategy for accessing power
and gaining self-knowledge. Requiring only discipline and
practice, it can be used by anyone, anytime, and anyplace
without detection, if so desired. There is no hierarchy and no
dogma. There are, however, certain broad themes and com-
mon discoveries, the so-called rules of the game listed below.
When you know these rules, life becomes easier and more
fun. As illustrated in our story above, you feel more in
charge of your destiny, and your enthusiasm for living takes a
leap. For shamans, the rules of the game are as follows:
- There is an ordinary world that works according to the
everyday laws of physics ad chemistry. - There is a nonordinary world, or spirit world, that works