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The quest for God transformed my life
Surviving “Berkeley in the 60s,” a turbulent time of demonstrations and unrest at the University of California, Berkeley, was a lot to ask of a teenager. Enrolled as an undergraduate during the era of the Free Speech Movement and the ensuing anti-Vietnam War protests, I found myself on a quest for calm and order in many facets of my life. With little religion in my upbringing, I had no spiritual foundation to help resolve the challenges confronting me. Everything appeared to be out of order, including my body—I seemed subject to an ongoing, serious physical problem. I had many questions, but no answers.
Some of those unanswered questions had to do with finding meaningful relationships within the context of the “free love” being practiced by so many young people. I also struggled with the pressure to conform to the prevailing allurement of alcohol and drugs, because I felt uncomfortable with this way of socializing.
Initially finding it challenging to succeed with my studies in music, which had been the central core of my life for the previous ten years, I became discouraged and ended up leaving music. I shifted my focus to the medical sciences, but within the first year, I was left unfulfilled and greatly missing the real passion of my life—music. Yet it seemed all but impossible to regain the critical lost years of music study, a profession whose success demands continuous years of dedication and practice. It felt as if my whole life was beginning to unravel.
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