July 4th, 2026 I decided to start building an iPad app that would put all the information from the “Gateway Healing” chapter of the book Earthway in one easy-to-use format. I had read the book by Mary Sumer Rain in the early 1990s and had always been fascinated by this particular chapter. It contained a list of health ailments that could be addressed with the use of music, nature sounds, botanicals, stones, incense, and mental visualizations. The main problem for the reader – in my opinion – was the mass amount of information spread across 32 pages. If one wanted to follow along and try to engage in one of these sessions, he or she would soon find that it was quite a large undertaking to do correctly.

The duration of these sessions could be anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes. And during this time, a specific musical instrument needed to be played along with nature sounds such as a stream or forest. It was difficult to locate music and nature sounds that you could play together back in 1990 for long lengths of time. So my first order of business in creating this app was to find musicians to create original music at the specific lengths of time that I could add nature sounds to. As an artist in the AI era, it was EXTREMELY important for me to find real humans with real skills and real instruments.

Pan Flute

The first musician I hired was Carlos Carty in São Paulo, Brazil. I explained the project and asked him to create 10 minutes of pan flute music. If I remember correctly, he delivered his recording within 24 hours – and it was beautiful.

Violin

The next musician I found was Davis West, a violinist living in Berlin, Germany. His job was to create 20 minutes of original music, and he actually recorded two different pieces for me that were both fantastic.

Flute

The lovely Julia Bohdanova of Lviv, Ukraine recorded a stunning original 30-minute flute performance.

Drums

Ifedayo Folorunso from Ogbomoso, Nigeria created 40 minutes of amazing hand drumming music with a huge variety of percussion instruments such as the Djembe, Samba, Sekere, Akuba, and Omele.

Cello and Piano

I originally approached Volodymyr Kotliarov of Lviv, Ukraine to play cello. I soon learned he was also an accomplished pianist, so I hired him to create 60 minutes of piano music along with 50 minutes of cello music. He also suggested his good friend Julia Bohdanova for the flute performance.

Voice Talent

I wanted a narrator for the instruction video on how to use the app, and I found a creative Irish woman with the sweetest voice living in Scotland by the name of Ciara Carruthers.

The App

I have finished creating the iPad/iPhone app and am in the process of trying to make an Android version. Since all the text information comes directly from a book, I have put in a request to the publisher, Simon and Schuster, for reprint rights. I imagine this will be costly if they agree to allow it. It could be a few weeks before I hear back from them, so fingers crossed!

The Goods

The items needed for a Gateway healing session are simple. I acquired my collection of stones, metals, and crystals slowly over the years by visiting rock shops. The other necessary items are colored bottles, incense, essential oils, and various types of tea.