This is Puerto Rico!

With this incident I am ending my Puerto Rico stories. Once Governor Ferré invited me for breakfast. Two disciples accompanied me. The Governor played the piano. He played all kinds of classical music. His performance was excellent, excellent! I appreciated him to the skies. Then we went to the breakfast table. Alas, the Governor asked me to start. There was so much silverware. I did not know which fork or knife to use. In India we used to say, “God gave us our hands to eat with.” Governor Ferré looked at me. I did not know which fork or knife to pick up or which hand to use. Governor Ferré did not start; he wanted me to start.

I looked at my disciples pitifully, but it seems that there was no inner connection! Out of respect for me they did not start, but I was begging them inwardly to start. Outwardly if I had said, “You start,” it would have seemed odd, because the Governor had invited me. So, the Governor did not start, out of respect, and I did not start! I will never forget that experience!

Governor Ferré’s soul has come to me quite a few times. My paintings were on display at his museum for a few months.

I met with the first Governor of Puerto Rico, Muñoz-Marín. Then I saw Governor Sanchez, Luis Ferré and Hernandez-Colón. I met a mayor who was drunk! Governor Ferré wanted a particular street to be dedicated in my name, but the mayor did not want it. He was sitting beside me, and he was drunk.

I also saw Mayor Padilla of San Juan. He was a doctor.

Governor Colón gave me all the honours. He was the first one to give me his country’s honorary citizenship — the very first. All the highest honours he gave me. Every time I met with him, we used to meditate for five or ten minutes first, and then his wife, Lila, used to join.

From:Sri Chinmoy,The Path of my Inner Pilot, Agni Press, 2015
Sourced from https://srichinmoylibrary.com/pip