Master
also took care of the neighbor’s pets. When She first came, a neighbor’s
dog came to the Center. Master immediately sent him home, after having
his eye discharges wiped clean. We had been feeding him and so he kept
coming back, Master says that it was not right to take someone else’s
dog, even though the neighbor did not take good care of him. And She
sent the dog home with a brand new dog bed, along with dog medicine,
dog eye drops, a vegetarian dog-bone, and many other things for dogs
that he needed! She later went back to the neighbor’s house for a
“follow-up visit.”
She takes
care of animals just like Dr. Dolittle, (the movie character with a
gift for communicating with animals.) Any creature that comes to Her
house receives full treatment. She even took pity on the big, ugly vultures
that came and made a mess of Her yard, giving them food every day.
Master has
also made friends with all the neighbors around the Center. One day,
a neighbor had a fire in his backyard, and Master immediately called
all the resident-disciples and led us right up to the frontline, telling
us how to distribute water and dig firebreaks. With Master’s guidance,
we succeeded in containing a section of the fire. The fire then spread
to other areas, though, and the minute it got too big, Master called
everyone out. She gathered us together to make sure that we were all
okay, and explained that She had only instructed us to go inside because
there was no wind.
The resident
disciples went home to enjoy some cold drinks, but Master went back
to the site of the fire to give water and gifts to the firemen. Then
She checked up on all the neighbors in the area. That evening, a neighbor
family had no electricity, so Master immediately offered them a place
to stay in Her own trailer by Her house. She explained later that we
could not do much to stop the fire, but the important thing was that
we had fulfilled our duty to "love thy neighbor."
That was
just one occasion, but every day something different would happen. One
day, Master took us to a roadside diner. When we entered, the waitress
was not very polite and would not let Master bring any animals into
the restaurant. Later, when she was walking by Master's table, she noticed
that there was a bird on Master's napkin. Master smiled sweetly at her,
but the waitress gave Her a very disapproving look. Then the waitress
discovered that Master had brought a dog in Her shopping bag, so she
gave Master more stern glances.