Bows and Arrows By Abraham Lincoln

Have you ever gone somewhere and when you got there, for some reason, you begin to imagine that you had been there before? You see buildings or you see people and remember them but you were never there.

Some children, when very young, tell their parents about people they talk to and only they can see them. Mom and dad just smile and shake their heads in agreement. But they are never sure the child actually sees someone to talk to.

You can just dismiss it and go on with your life — most people don’t dwell on these sorts of experiences but seem to be familiar with them. Our children seemed to think angels visited them, comforted them, and helped them grow up.

You would have to be involved in a belief system, like Spiritualism, to be very familiar with reincarnation. I was searching for answers to personal questions related to religion and became somewhat familiar with some of those that are into past lives.

I read some stories about people who thought they were an Egyptian in an earlier life and had worked on the tombs of some famous people. Others remember being a queen, a pirate or a poor person living on the streets in London. To find them or to go back in time and check to see if that person actually lived is impossible.



But there are cases where youngsters tell their parents about a town far from their home and they talk about a store there and the name of the owners. Thinking the children are just talking about things they have heard, most of the parents dismiss these tales as a child’s fiction.

Some of these revelations are about events only a decade before and people are able to go to these towns, find the stores, and talk to the owners. And, yes, the names are correct and the people remember that person and say he had died from some disease or was in an accident.

Now the person knows what he remembers is the true story of his life here on earth. Not one life but at least two — the one he is living and the former life. It must be a trying experience for those who doubt past lives.

I was about ten when I suddenly remembered that Osage orange was the best wood for our bows. All of a sudden, kick the can, softball, and cowboy and Indians no longer interested me. I wanted to make a real Osage orange bow and did but shooting arrows risked a broken bow string if I did it more than once.

I did not remember anything else about that past life, if that’s what it was, but in my search for my right religion, I was introduced to a doctor who was able to see a major figure in my life. One who followed me and guided me through my life. And, yes, he was an Indian — some could see over my left shoulder. I never saw him, and didn’t know I had a “guide” as he was called.

To think that each of us has a guide is a wonderful thought. My connection to that life is my love of Nature, and this land before it was settled by people from Europe.