Free Just Like Heaven by Steven Slavick Page B

they had another child, someone who took after them. They think I’m a failure . That’s a pretty tough obstacle, wouldn’t you say?”
    “ It sure is. But th at was your choice.”
    “M y left leg is a little longer than my right leg. I didn’t choose that, did I?”
    “That’s genetics. You selected your parents. But they determined your physical appearance.”
    “So you’re saying th at people who are born with HIV or Down syndrome asked for those impairments?”
    “Those who are born into the physical world with physical or mental disabilities often leave the physical realm with a much higher spiritual progression than you or I would obtain in multiple lifetimes. They are the brave souls. They are the ones we admire on the Other Side. But in other cases, it is the parents or someone close to the family who comes into contact with someone with a life-changing disability that will be most impacted by that person. Under those circumstances, the person who freely allows herself to live with any disability for the spiritual advancement of others is on a different spiritual plane: they sacrifice themselves to allow others to grow from the privilege of their relationship. ”
    Nina still had trouble believing anyone would choose that type of existence; the difficulty in navigating the world, and dealing with all of the prejudices, would be crushing and seemingly insurmountable. She guessed that’s why Mei Lee and others in heaven thought so highly of those who decided on living with a disability . Which made sense. Who would choose that existence but someone with a special soul?
    The idea of free will brought her back to her parents. “ So you’re saying that I wanted my parents to hate me? ”
    “Do they really hate you? Maybe they are disappointed because with their genetics, they felt you would be a prodigy in the legal field. And because they enjoy that career, they presumed that maybe you would, too. Can you see why they would feel that way?”
    Nina understood the rationale, but she just wondered why her parents couldn’t love her for who she was, rather than who they wante d her to be. But again, if Mei Lee spoke the truth, Nina wanted to overcome that challenge for her own spiritual a dvancement. Besides, s he’d always known the uphill battle she would face in trying to break into the recording industry. Yet, the challenge made the goal that much more appealing. To accomplish what only a small percentage could attain meant something to her. The saying, “It’s about the journey, not the destination” had always made sense to her on a spiritual level, rather than an intellectual one. She’d never given that credo much thought: she just took it as truth because it felt right. And that might make sense because, as Mei Lee suggested, Nina had taken this path and chosen this profession to elevate her soul . That d issolved some of Nina’ s impatience at having, until this moment, failed to attain her dreams.
    “Is every Spirit Guide as wise as you?”
    “Oh, I’m sure many are much wiser. But you chose me , so you’re stuck w ith me. And if you have any concerns, I suggest you take it up with.. . yourself. ”
    “Then does everyone have a Spirit Guide?”
    “In the beginning? Yes. But if they break from God’s path, that person’s guide leaves them.”
    “Breaking from H is path? You mean, like the Ten Commandments? Murder and all that?”
    “Not quite, although whether or not an individual can atone and receive redemption for the act of murder is something only that individua l and God could determine. These dark spirits, sociopaths like Adolf Hitler, Jeffrey Dahmer, and others who know right from wrong but harm others for their own gain or enjoyment do not go to heaven. Upon death, they immediately go back to e arth to work on their spiritual advancement . In this instance, God determines which parents they will have. He gives every individual a chance to reach their full potential. Again,