The following are some things that made me feel grace of God. 

Once I started planning my trip I found everything happened quite smoothly. I planned to visit Los Angeles which is around 5 hour drive (> 200 miles) from Bay Area where I stay. We planned to visit Disney Land and Universal Studios. I checked with friends and colleagues who have been there. Took instructions and tips from them. 

1. I need to purchase tickets for both Universal Studios and Disney Land. Though I didn't put much effort, some friends helped me to get tickets at a good price through their contacts. 

2. I booked a car. I did it well in advance to avoid problems. 

3. I took advice from friends and booked hotels in LA. To avoid food problems we made sure that we get a hotel where we can cook. 

As the day for travel approached, I was getting a little nervous. Will I make a safe trip? Since I am driving a long distance, will I be able to drive properly without getting lost and getting frustrated? Will I be able to drive without getting into an accident especially with the rental car? Will I be able to follow directions and get to local places without getting lost? Numerous are the doubts that kept coming to my mind. Only with faith, I was able to drive away some of the fears. But on various counts I felt 'guidance' which soothed my fears. Doubt is one of the major enemies for a spiritual aspirant. Despite positive experiences where we feel presence of God, doubt keeps cropping up again. 

On the designated day, I took help of my colleague and got my rental car. I took the car to office so that I get used to the car. After lunch I returned home. My wife did all necessary preparation of cooking food and ensuring everything is packed. Even she is like me, a little nervous. I envy my daughter who does have a worry and eagerly looked forward to the trip with anticipation. We started at around 2 PM with all necessary equipment. As we started, we encountered lot of traffic. It took us more than 1 hour to get on to Interstate Highway 5 (known as I-5) which goes all the way to Los Angeles. Onward journey looked long drawn. Though we started early, our stops and a little cautious driving on my part took it longer to reach. Once it became dark I was not really confident driving on the unfamiliar roads. But somehow we reached the hotel at 9 PM without getting lost. We were glad the major journey was over and rested hoping to make a good vacation. 

We had earlier planned to visit Disney Land on Day 1 and Universal Studio on Day 2. But just a few hours before we started one of my colleagues suggested to switch the visits so that my daughter will not get bored on Day 2. I took the suggestion also as divine guidance and followed it. True to the suggestion, my daughter got really bored in Universal Studio (which we visited on Day 1) and really enjoyed Disneyland on Day 2. 

Day 1: On day 1 we got ready and started following directions to reach Universal Studio. I couldn't find the exit as mentioned in the directions I had but still took an exit which suggested Universal City and fortunately ended up in the right place. Our trip was enjoyable. We did various things in the theme park and took photos. Luckily we were able to take little home food and eat it. By evening we were tired and returned to hotel by 7 PM. We again ate the home cooked food and took rest. 

Day 2: Disneyland was a little farther from our hotel and took us more than half an hour to reach there. That was a Sunday and a very busy day. We had a good time at this park also and my daughter really enjoyed meeting all the characters and everything there. Again by 6 PM we were tired and returned to hotel early at 7 PM 

Return Journey: On return journey also we started early at 10 AM and reached home by 5 PM. Journey back home was a little faster. A summary: Despite my fears the trip was very safe and we felt God blessed us. I was able to complete entire drive without getting lost even once and without making any driving mistakes (changing lanes at wrong time etc.). It was really a safe trip and which is very critical. We felt guidance in every detail and felt happy for the blessing. There are many other minor details which will take lot more effort on my part to share. But this experience was certainly a happy one for us and we take this as a blessing of God.

Jai Sriram, Jai Hanuman

Jai Sriram, Jai Hanuman. 

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