Editor 's Note: These are a few stories from a forthcoming book for children, telling true tales of animals that met Baba. To meet the Avatar is great fortune for two-footers and four-footers and winged, finny things!! And sometimes Baba would indicate that by His Grace such a one would speed up in evolution, even to take a human birth. If you have a true Baba animal story, or would like to volunteer to illustrate a story, write to the Editor.

Baba wanted to visit the Bronx Zoo. It was a rainy day and Baba was in His wheelchair. We took turns pushing His wheelchair. We came to the Penguin House, which was built like a cave with big tanks of water for the penguins to play in. One penguin stood on the highest rock above the pool, well-dressed in his black-and-white tuxedo. The minute Baba entered, "Mayor" Penguin clapped his wings, made a beautiful dive and came up against the glass, beating his wings in welcome to the Avatar.

One day Baba was sitting in his chair and his dog Peter was lying at Baba's feet. Mani was sitting near Baba, and they were both watching Peter who seemed to be asleep. Suddenly Peter twitched and growled and his little paws made running motions. Baba said, "See how Peter is fast asleep, but in his dreams he is being chased by another dog. Yet he is really safe at my feet. This life too is really a dream, and one day when we wake up from it we'll realize that all along we were really safe here at my feet and were only dreaming."

People loved to bring their pets to meet Baba and get His blessing. Birds in cages, kittens in boxes, dogs, and other animals were brought to Him wherever He visited. One day in 1952 at the Center someone brought a quart jar of tiny green tree frogs, the kind that sing all night long in summer. The frogs were all piled up helter skelter in the jar. But when Baba held the jar close to His chest, all the frogs climbed upon that side of the jar . . . to be close to Him! Is it true that on moonlit nights, all the frogs in the Center say, Rivett Rivett, He is here?!! Come and listen!

At Meher Mount, on Ojai, California, a German Shepherd named Wolf followed Baba all over wherever He went. At the end of the day, as Baba sat in the car waiting to be driven home, Wolf came and put his head in Baba's lap. Baba patted his head and signaled, Because he met Me, he will take a human birth next life. Wolf went "west" a few months later.

Elizabeth had a little miniature Boston terrier named Kippy. When she arrived in India, in 1933, Baba cradled His arms and made a rocking gesture, meaning, Where is Kippy? But Kippy wasn’t far away — he was in a special