Treasure of the Mind is a short, fictionalized story of author J. Michaels' recovery from grief and guilt after the death of his teen-aged son, Chris.  

 

It's told from the perspective of a bereft father who interacts with a friend named Wayne and a wise man named Solomon. 

 

At the start of the book, the Wayne character says "Tell me about your hell and we'll see if there's a way out."  We follow along with the father as he learns how to exit from suffering. 

 
Michaels has an unusually beautiful way with words. He artfully combines equal doses of prose and poetry to deliver an uncompromising ACIM-based spiritual message about the meaning of love and life. The essence of the Course is captured and distilled in a clear, concise and minimalist way. As the Solomon character says, "...you know my position on the use of words; as few as possible to make the point..." 

 

The best part is that Michaels doesn't actually talk directly about the Course. He doesn't rely on extensive quotes. And he doesn't offer up the re-hashed interpretations of others. It's refreshing to hear from a translator who can think for himself. 

 

That said, the story is a predictable one, and you know from the start how it's going to end up. This doesn't take away from the emotional impact that reaches out and grabs you as you change your perspective about the death of a loved one.

I very much liked Michaels' lyrical poetry, which reads like a song on paper. Somehow Michaels is able to make an elegant point with the precision of a surgeon. "Forgive me Father for I have sinned; falser words were never spoken. Children of God could be but perfect; even if thoughts are broken."

"Treasure of the Mind" would be particularly helpful to any parent dealing with the loss of a child, and it's really too bad the subtitle doesn't specifically target or appeal to this audience. 

 
Karen Bentley
America's Spiritual Reviewer
[email protected]

 

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3. Miracles occur naturally as expressions of love. The real miracle is the love that inspires them. In this sense, everything that comes from love is a miracle.  From this You may begin to understand that Reality is Love, and anything less than Love is unreal.  Reality is also Life.  And anything less than Life is unreal.
 
4. All miracles mean life, and God is the Giver of life. His Voice will direct you very specifically. You will be told all you need to know.  You need only listen, else the Voice for Love will fall on deaf ears.  This is why I said: "You have eyes and You do not see, and ears and You do not hear."6   It is also what Jeremiah the prophet meant when he said that You "have forsaken the fountain of living waters" - of Life - "and hewn out cisterns" - limited concepts: the ego, and limited containers: a 'brain' - a 'body' - for life - "broken cisterns that hold no water."7       

Life cannot be contained by body, nor can It be limited or curtailed or controlled by the body.  Life is ever-available for It is What You Are.  It is a synonym for Love.

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