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beginning to hurt from the long hours of siing and waiting, and my resolve to be uncomplaining seemed to evaporate in the noonday heat. “Should I or shouldn’t I sit on a chair?” became my mantra for the day, and I ruminated on it, pondered it, and bothered Sam about it. I simply wanted to be comfortable!
Days seem long when you are uncomfortable and when you feel that Sai Baba is ignoring you. What should I do? My obsession grew. I had to sit on a chair just once. So what if it wasn’t quite correct? Sai Baba didn’t really love me anyway! My decision had been made, and there was no turning back.
The next day, I walked with determination to the darshan area in the cool, dark morning, a lile sheepish and feigning a slight limp, as I moved to the chairs with the other “chair ladies.” I plopped down onto a hard metal chair, which felt like a throne compared to the hard dirt ground. The sun was beginning to bathe the eastern sky in golden light, and the crowds suddenly hushed. Sai Baba emerged from the temple. As he walked toward me, dazzling rays of sunlight sparkled and danced in his dark hair. I was stunned; he was so beautiful, and I was so comfortable. I gasped at his beauty, and at that moment my heart opened to Sai Baba’s love.
In the next moment, Sam was motioning me up to the temple. We had been called in for another interview! I floated in and Sai Baba asked me, “How are you?” “I’m so happy,” I answered. He moved his hand in the familiar circular motion and suddenly a long, sparkling necklace spilled from his hand. It was a japamala, a necklace consisting of 108 beads that is used when reciting the name of God. Sai