Caribbean

On September 2, Golden Year 3 (2006), 33 initiates from Florida, Virginia, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New York and California Centers joined hands and set out on a seven-day Caribbean cruise to distribute Alternative Living flyers in Haiti, Cayman Islands, Jamaica and Mexico. We brought 20,000 flyers in English and French, 39,000 in English and Spanish and 17,000 copies in English.

Day One and Two – At Sea

At departure, we started distributing the flyers in the Miami airport. Recipients included airport security personnel. One lady told us excitedly that she had been considering doing the same thing for a long time, and she really appreciated us making it a reality.

Onboard the ship, our large group of vegetarian diners soon attracted the attention of the head chef, who came to greet us personally on the first night and gladly promised to custom-make vegetarian specials for us in addition to the existing vegetarian options on the menu.

On the second night, the chef came again and inquired if we were pleased with his food. He was a gracious person and conscientious chef. We presented him with Master’s sample booklet and magazine, and promised to mail him the Supreme Kitchen cookbook. Most of the attendants were also aware of our vegetarian diet and did an excellent job. To the interested ones, we gave a News magazine or sample booklet.

The management also kindly allowed us to use one of their conference rooms, free of charge, for our group meditation each morning. We were very grateful for God’s arrangement so we could recharge ourselves with divine energy before heading out to distribute the flyers.

Day Three – Labadee, Haiti

At the stop in Labadee, Haiti, we distributed approximately 15,000 flyers in bilingual English and French. Our initiates divided into four groups across the island. All the local people working in those areas received at least one copy of the Alternative Living flyer. With our detailed explanation, many people who had been very concerned about the health impact of eating meat decided to start the vegetarian diet right away. Most volunteered to take many flyer copies to family and friends who lived in villages inaccessible to tourists.

A few villagers left their phone numbers and mailing addresses so we could mail them more flyers, including a Seventh-Day Adventist school with 7,000 students. Because the Seventh-Day Adventists promote vegetarianism, the school was very open to the Alternative Living flyer and asked us to send more.

While distributing the flyers, we also tried to help local people financially or through buying their products. Our hearts warmed as we saw their genuine happy smiles. One villager shed tears of joy as he received our contribution.

Day Four – Ocho Rios, Jamaica

At our stop in Ocho Rios, one sister gave out flyers to slowed cars passing by in town. One taxi driver who received a flyer came back one hour later and asked for more information. He said although he had already been a vegetarian for a long time, he never knew about the nutritional facts of the vegetarian diet until now. One school girl took a flyer and started reading it, then came back and asked for many more copies to share with her classmates. Receptive shop owners also volunteered to keep a stack of the flyers to share with their customers.

School girl handing out flyers

A local taxi driver was also very kind and helpful. After he knew of our intention, he drove us to the middle of the nearby village where there were shops, banks, churches and a marketplace. In one hour, our team handed out flyers to the people working or walking on the main streets. Then, the driver took us directly to a local hospital. We were pleasantly surprised by his decision. It turned out to be great and must have been God’s power at work that brought him this wonderful inspiration. Our vegetarian information was a perfect fit for the patients, who tend to be more receptive to a different health perspective.

With most people in Jamaica being Christian, their response to our “God bless you!” when giving them a flyer was to warm immediately and return a loving look to us. Nothing was more rewarding than seeing those patients’ faces light up and blossom into angelic smiles. We gave the taxi driver a sample booklet during the trip, and yes, a quite handsome tip that brought a big smile to his face.

When the team going to Montego Bay arrived after two hours traveling, the children had just gotten out of school. There were so many people walking that we just stood at both sides of the intersections and gave them flyers. With thousands of people going by, all the flyers were gone in two-and-a-half hours. On this innocent Caribbean island, a lot of people were already partially or totally vegetarian and many told us that they didn’t eat meat. One elder lady was especially cute – she even opened her lunch box to show us that all her food was vegetarian.

On day four, we gave out approximately 20,000 flyers in Ocho Rios and Montego Bay. We felt as if God, we and the local people merged into one. We couldn’t tell if we were doing God’s work, or God was doing our work!

Day Five – George Town, Grand Cayman

The cruise ship stopped at George Town, Grand Cayman, in the morning. As the Cayman Islands are very well developed, with all modern facilities and conveniences, we were a little concerned whether such a sophisticated community would be open to our vegetarian information. To our surprise, the flyers were very well received and appreciated. Some police officers, after reading, told us that we could leave more inside the police stations. A lady who worked inside a cell phone store came out to ask for a copy, then later came back again to ask for a whole stack to share with her customers.

One sister stepped into a fashion store where three ladies were all the way in the back reading the Bible. They gladly told us that they were all vegetarians and really appreciated our efforts. They also asked us to leave some more flyers in the store, so they could give to other people. Very pure and innocent, they even asked us if they had to pay for the flyers!

The same friendliness could be seen everywhere in the city. When one initiate went into a cell phone store and told the store employees that he couldn’t get his U.S. cell phone to work there, they generously allowed him to use their internal office phone, free of charge. In another instance, someone responded to our request for directions by immediately volunteering to drive us to the destination. When asked why everyone in the city looked so friendly and happy, one taxi driver replied that she believed everyone’s life should have a lot of smiles, and people should not be selfish. It seemed that many of the inhabitants on this island had a very high level of spiritual consciousness.

That day we also visited a big local hospital and asked for permission to distribute flyers. The manager read our flyer and very warmly welcomed our effort. So, we placed stacks of flyers on the magazine tables in each clinic’s waiting room and also handed out flyers to the patients.

Some of the remote residential areas we went to were not very densely populated, but the driver was willing to stop so we could deliver flyers whenever we saw some local people. We also attached them to phone booths and bus shelters wherever possible.

Near the dock were some shopping booths whose vendors had received a flyer early in the morning. When we returned around noon, one of the vendors told us that she had decided to start trying the vegetarian diet. This was the second time on this short trip that people told us they wanted to switch over to the vegetarian diet immediately. We believe many more of such God’s miracles are at work without us even knowing it.

While on the island, we also got in touch with a local courier service and asked if they could help deliver flyers in large quantities. The shop owner liked the idea of promoting vegetarianism and was willing to do some research. An hour later, she informed us that she could deliver about 2,000 Alternative Living flyers to commercial and residential mailboxes at the local airport for a very reasonable rate.

We gave out approximately 20,000 flyers in George Town, Grand Cayman. Here, we noticed that our distribution efforts were being guided by divine inspirations that would flash into our minds when we needed them. All we had to do was quiet our thoughts and attend to these subtle inner messages.

*Note: Master stayed in and out of Grand Cayman for about one year!

Day Six – Cozumel, Mexico

Cozumel is an island off the Mexican mainland severely damaged by Hurricane Wilma last year. The day we arrived was the first day the pier was restored to being operational since the storm!

When a sister was distributing flyers at the taxi station, one driver came up to her and said that he wanted to help. Being a devoted Christian, he had a feeling earlier in the morning that it would be a special day for him to do God’s work. He felt that if he missed this chance, he would never have it again. Later when he read our flyer, he realized that this was the mission that he was supposed to do, so he volunteered to drive us to the downtown area where there were a lot more people. Afterward, he would not accept payment for the fare. He said he wanted to do it as his contribution to our mission. The only thing he asked for was Master’s photo and our Alternative Living T-shirt.

We distributed about 20,000 flyers in Cozumel and Playa del Carmen, Mexico. Afterward, everyone had a feeling of serenity and bliss. We were all fulfilled inside to have accomplished our mission, thanks to God’s constant blessing and guidance.

Looking back at our time in the Caribbean, we gave out approximately 76,000 flyers. Moreover, we had daily group meditation, delicious vegetarian food specially prepared by a chef, nice facilities to enjoy on the ship, beautiful scenery, many brothers and sisters to encourage each other on the spiritual path and God’s love 24 hours a day. What more could we ask of a cruise vacation!

<<	Contents	>>
Refer this page to friends