Includes bibliographical references.

Story one: the substitute -- Story two: the old tree covered with sheets -- Story three: the soldier who didn't get angry -- Story four: the lobster and the squid -- Story five: what an old man can do -- Story six: the man who insisted on death and suffering -- Story seven: the man who just missed Jesus -- Story eight: the crossed-out name -- Story nine: somebody had to be a Christian -- Story ten: the minister who instilled despair in the heart of a child -- Story eleven: the kingdom that fell apart -- Story twelve: the importance of being there -- Story thirteen: the difficulty of avoiding illusion -- Story fourteen: the message in the bottle -- Story fifteen: burying an old experience -- Story sixteen: the importance of taking new bearings -- Story seventeen: life is for dancing -- Story eighteen: the unthinkable death of a son -- Story nineteen: perfection isn't all it's cracked up to be -- Story twenty: learning to tend your own garden -- Story twenty-one: the story that says it all.