One summer day, with the sun bright in the sky and the waters in the ravines merely a trickle, I made my way along the partially dry bed of a little stream. It was necessary to step around some stones that protruded like turtles' backs from the slate bottom. Some of these stones had been partially freed from the slate by running water when the stream was high, and one had been rolled away, leaving a pool of clear water in its place.
As I walked, a sense of depression seemed very real, forcing me to struggle for inspiration to overcome it. For a moment I stopped by the pool, looking at the rolled-away stone. The stone, resistant and hard, seemed to me like problems of mortal mind: fear, depression, lack, loneliness. And the slate bottom seemed typical of the elements of mortal mind in my thinking.
Just as the water in the stream wore away the slate and freed the stone, so the life-giving waters of Truth, poured into human consciousness, wash away the impediments of mortal mind, remove the stones of error, and leave in their place a pool of purity and joy. These life-giving waters not only destroy error but bring us the understanding of God, of His omnipotent goodness, of His gracious love for His child, of His allness. My recognition of the power with which Truth operates— irresistible, ever present—washed away all sense of depression.
