Beverly Hamilton
The word ‘experiencer’ would best describe me. I’ve always jumped into the lake, then learned how to swim. After college, I worked with children who were labeled ‘less than perfect’. I worked in Europe for two years, then moved to Colorado to get another degree. However, my real lessons came from life and the many people I met, like Fritz Perls, who developed Gestalt Therapy.
At 28, I had cancer of the kidney and was told I might not live. Two days earlier and feeling good, I had written an essay on Death. I keep writing down thoughts and in ’75 published a small, beautiful book of poetry called, Grains of Sand by Beverly Robbins (before I married) It’s on Amazon. In the ‘summer of ’67. I drove my VW to San Francisco. I found a great job and had a fabulous time. I didn’t die. With this ‘sentence’ over my head, the prospects of marriage dimmed.
However, that changed when I met Ulf Hamilton. He had separated from his alcoholic wife. They had two children age 8 and 10. When we married two years later, the children came to live with us. That’s ‘jumping into the lake“!!
I met Judy Skutch Whitson, who in ’75, introduced many of us to A Course in Miracles (acim.org). It became the central touchstone in my journey. When I met Ulf in ’79, he join me in this venture. Like with so many, it touched Ulf deeply. Bill Thetford, the transcriber of the Course, did a reading at our wedding. Years later, I hosted an internet talk show called “A Course in Miracles and Other Fun Things“.
Ulf’s background was Swedish and American. Since his parents were in the diplomatic service, he had a more formal upbringing. Ulf attended boarding schools on the East coast and in Sweden. He maintained his Swedish network of friends from school and the army. We visited Sweden on many occasions and hosted many of these friends here.
Ulf was a loving, kind and gentle husband and father. He also owned a successful business and had many long term business clients due to the fact he was a very service oriented business man with unquestionable integrity. We had a very diverse group of personal friends. Ulf related to people well and rarely made a negative statement about anyone.
With Ulf’s diagnosis of Dementia and Sleep Apnea in ’03, I felt I had just jumped into yet another lake and was drowning. It is such a helpless feeling dealing with a loved one in crises.
Our Timeless Year: Miracles of Love Lighten the Clouds of Dementia allowed me to express the love, creativity and humor that defined the challenge of sharing this incredible experience with Ulf. Join us in our journey of living in ‘the present moment’.
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