This is a personal story, and it may seem a strange one to share given the difficult days we are living through. But I think it could not be more relevant. Here goes:

Years ago I read “The Hiram Key” by Christopher Knight and Robert Lomas. Not a memorable book, but one thing I vaguely remembered about it was the authors’ alternative explanation for where the name “America” came from. Over the last few weeks, a very remarkable experience unfolded in relation to this question…

Long before Columbus discovered the Americas, there was a belief, or a prophecy (supposedly originating with the Essenes and passed through Knights Templar) about a promised land where humanity would blossom in freedom and great prosperity. That land was due West under a star called Merica. So this promised land was said to be “verso la Merica” – toward the Merica. Eventually, “la Merica” became America.

This randomly crossed my mind early this February and I was curious to know whether Knight and Lomas’ hypothesis got much corroboration since the book’s publication. I looked it up online, but all I found was one blog post in Italian citing their book as the only source. I left the article open in my browser to revisit later and busied myself with other things.

At the time, my sons Ethan and Jesse were staying at their mother’s place in France, about 2 or 3 kilometers away from me as a bird flies. About two weeks went by and on Sunday, 16th February I picked the boys up at their mother’s and we started on our long drive to Croatia to spend a few days there. As we passed Genova toward Milano, out of the blue Jesse, who was 7 years old, asked me:

“Dad, what does it mean, America without an A?”

I had to check if I understood correctly:

“Did you mean to ask me what Merica means?”

Jesse confirmed that this was his question. Before I ventured to reply I asked him what made him think of that, but he couldn’t explain: “I dunno, it just crossed my mind, like that.” I asked whether he had thought about it before, but he wasn’t aware that he thought about Merica in the days prior… The question occurred to him then and there.

I didn’t really have an answer for Jesse – I never read that Italian blogspot and I only very vaguely remembered the Hiram Key story. I told him I would read up and  get back to him about Merica. I did so a few days later, but found nothing interesting to report: as fascinating as Lomas and Knight’s story was, to this day they are the only source for it.

The magical mystery…

But how to explain Jesse’s asking me what “America without an A” meant? I never mentioned Merica to him – or to anyone else (I didn’t give much importance to this story to begin with); Jesse never had access to my computer, and there was also no chance I ever had that Italian blogspot open in front of Jesse. In short, we discussed nothing, he saw nothing, and at the time I looked up the Merica story Jesse was not with me but with his mother.

There is only one explanation possible: thoughts can and do pass between us whether we consciously communicate them or not. Mind you, I am a university educated, scientifically minded person. Until not so long ago I was completely on board with the modern reductionist science that dismisses these things as coincidences or contrivances of flighty imagination.

But this was not the first time I observed something similar. Over the recent years, particularly since the birth of my children, I had many such experiences and I wrote down at least twenty. I try to write them down just after they happen, else they end up forgotten, or you might remember them so vaguely that later you could easily convince yourself that you probably got it wrong. I posted one of these stories on this blog, titled “Blown Away!”

Just a curiosity, or does this actually matter?

No, it matters greatly. If our thoughts can reach the minds of those around us, then we bear responsibility for the way we think. If you harbour fear and anxiety, or anger and resentment, you could be passing these sentiments to the people you are close with. Likewise, if you are beset by unexplained anxiety, it’s possible that you are feeling someone else’s pain.

The implication, particularly during these darkening times, is that we should be doubly vigilant about keeping our thoughts and feelings in order. So by all means, reject fear and fearful thoughts and cultivate faith in yourself. Always tell the truth; even if you think you can deceive someone, your thruth may already be present in their minds and sooner or later they will recognize it.

My farther thoughts about this would be a long and winding speculation, but I am very certain about what’s at that speculation’s end. Beyond a shadow of doubt I know that what I just described, call it telepathy if you like, is a good thing. It’s evidence that we are bonded in ways we can’t easily understand and which operate outside of our conscious will.

The importance of this is hard to fathom, but it can’t be a random fluke. More likely, it is central to our evolution and to humanity’s transcendence from our current state. If that is so, bearing responsibility for your thoughts and your inner dialogue has important implications.

Grow silently

Do not allow yourself to be discouraged by fear and despair that the media shovels our way 24/7. We are witnessing the manifestations of old systems collapsing. And while some of those manifestations appear fearsome, keep in mind Confucius‘ counsel:

“A seed grows with no sound. But a tree falls with huge noise. Destruction has noise but creation is quiet. This is the power of silence … grow silently.”

Destruction is all around us creating great noise, but you carry a seed that grows silently within you. Be mindful of it and shield it from anxiety as you would do for your child. Things that emerge from seeds are worthy of our reverence. If we cultivate them with attention and love, they can grow beautiful and majestic.

As Dostoevsky said, beauty will save the world. That beauty is us – you and I – our children, our parents, our friends, all of us. We can’t see what all these seeds will become, but it should be easy to believe – nature’s creations are always so beautiful. Be sure to turn your love inward as well as outward.