As they drove onto Russ's lot, Melanie was surprised to see that the well had been drilled and the basement poured. She had Russ place the cooler in the trailer and then made him go outside while she put the food in the fridge.
"You really aren't going to let me see what you brought, are you, you heartless wench." Russ grinned at her as she came out of the trailer.
"No chance. I'll bet you were a real little brat at Christmas, trying to find out what you were getting in the way of presents."
"Who me? I'll have you know I was a model child."
"I'll just bet you were. Now let's go catch some fish."
"Just two fish, unless you don't want one."
"Two fish it is." Melanie helped carry the necessary equipment to the boat. She was beginning to feel like an old hand at this fishing business. But she still wasn't going to touch a worm.
Out on the lake, they drifted quietly for a while, enjoying the day and the peaceful surroundings. Suddenly Russ asked, "By the way, what is my next lesson on 'magic'? I've been wondering about it for days."
"Did you read anything about 'grumbling' in the book you borrowed? I can't remember if it made mention of it."
"Nope. That's a new one to me. What is it?" Russ had no idea what she was talking about, but he was sure it would be something interesting.
"Have you ever meditated, Russ?"
"Nope."
"Well, in order to 'grumble' you will need to do a little meditating first. It's necessary to calm and clear your mind, and to be able to hold focus for a few minutes. There are good audiotapes that can really help with the process. Once you can do that, the rest is easy. 'Grumbling' is a process whereby you resolve a difference with someone without confronting them physically. You just calm your mind, call them up, and talk directly to their subconscious. That way, their conscious mind doesn't get in the way. You will get an impression right away of how receptive they are. There are actually three parts to the process - explain the situation as you see it, admit your part in it, and then offer a solution that will work for both parties."
"Got an example you can share with me?"
"Let's see. Okay, when I first tried using this, I had a client come into the office, ranting and raving, and angry. He had purchased a large generator but forgot to notify us, so it wasn't added to his policy. About fourteen months later, it was stolen and the company denied the claim. He was really angry with himself for not adding it to the policy, but was taking it out on the nearest person, who happened to be me."