In these stories I would like to show the many different ways that people strive towards a better life that is more secure and enjoyable. Sometimes our lives may be in a downward spiral and it might feel as if everything is disintegrating on a path of entropy. Our journey on earth is a short period of being exposed to interaction with the outer world, a period of awareness and self-reflection, which often follows a path that touches both hope and despair. I hope these snippets of life will enable the reader to rise in awareness to the inner spirit, which is eternal and divine. Human consciousness is a special entity that interacts with whatever it focuses on, like the flame of a fire, unlike a passing wind that simply changes outer situations. Some of these stories show the effect of consciousness on an event. It is here that the narrator of the story participates in its content.