The Theft of the Spirit

the long version

This book is the story of my metamorphosis from doctor to healer, from doer to helper. It's a story of an arrogant young physician who was sent to New Mexico to fulfill his military obligation by working with Native Americans. I knew nothing about Indians other than what I'd seen in the movies and thought that cheering for them would give me an inside track to acceptance. It didn't. I was a "white man" and, therefore, held responsible for centuries of depredations of the Indian people even though I myself wasn't culpable. I've stayed in Indian country as a physician for most of my life. It was there that I began to learn about methods of healing I'd never imagined possible and about an energy source within us that can help renew us, especially at those times when we need it most. - Introduction.