The following testimonial is from the book "The Law
and the Promise"

The following story illustrates the way in which a lady
prepared her "stately habitation" by imaginatively sleeping in
it... or "dwelling therein":
"A few month ago my husband decided to place our home
on the market. The main object for the move which we had discussed many
times was to find a home large enough for the two of us, my mother and my
aunt, in addition to ten cats, three dogs and one parakeet. Believe it or
not, the contemplated move was my husbands idea as he loved my mother and
aunt and said I was at their house most of the time anyway, so 'why not
live together and pay one tax bill?' I liked the idea tremendously, but I
knew that this new home would have to be something very special in size,
location and arrangement as I insisted on privacy for all concerned.
"So at the moment I was undecided whether to sell our
present home or not, but I didn't argue as I knew quite well from past
experience with imagining that our house would not sell until I stopped
'sleeping' in it. Two months and four or five real estate brokers later,
my husband had given up on the sale of our house and so had the brokers.
At this point I had convinced myself I now wanted the change, so for four
nights in my imagination I went to sleep in the kind of home I would like
to own. On the fifth day, my husband had an appointment at a friends home
and while there, met a stranger who 'just happened' to be looking
for a house in the hills. He was, of course, brought swiftly back to see
our house which he walked through once and said, "I'll buy
it". This didn't' make us very popular with the brokers, but that was
all right with me as I was happy to keep the broker's commission in the
family! We moved within ten days and stayed with my mother while looking
for a new home.
"We listed our requirements with every agent on the
Sunset Strip only (because I wouldn't move out of the area) and each one
of them without exception informed us we were both mad. It was entirely impossible,
they said, to find an older home of English style with two separate living
rooms, separate apartment, a library, and built on a flat knoll with
enough ground space to fence for large dogs--- and located in one particular
area. When we told them the price we would pay for this house they just
looked sad.
"I said that wasn't
all we wanted. We wanted wood paneling all through the house, a huge
fireplace, a magnificent view and seclusion--- no close neighbors, please.
At this point the lady agent would giggle and remind me that there was no
such house, but if there were they would realize five times what we were
willing to pay, But I knew there was such a house --- because my
imagination had been sleeping in it, and if I am my
imagination, then I had been sleeping in it.
"by
the second week we had exhausted five real estate offices, and the
gentleman in the sixth office was looking a little wild when one of his
partners who had not spoken until then said, 'Why don't you show them the
place up Kings Road?' a third partner in the office laughed sourly and said," that
property isn't' even listed. An besides--- the old lady would throw you
off the property. She's got two acres up there and you know she wouldn't
split.'
"Well, I didn't know
what she wouldn't split, but my interest had been aroused by the street
name for I liked that particular area best of all. So I asked why not just
take a look anyway, for laughs, As we drove up the street and turned off
onto a private road, we approached a large two-story house built of
redwood and brick, English in appearance, surrounded by tall trees and sitting
alone and aloof on its own knoll, viewing the city below from all of its
many windows. I felt a peculiar excitement as we walked to the front door
and were greeted by a lovely woman who graciously asked us in,
"I
do not think I breathed for the next minute or two, for I had walked into
the most exquisite room I had ever seen, The solid redwood walls and the
brick of a great fireplace rose to a height of twenty-eight feet
terminating in an arched ceiling joined together by huge redwood beams,
The room was straight out of Dickens, and I could almost her Christmas
carolers singing on the balcony of the upstairs dining room which looked
out over the living room, A great cathedral window gave a view of sky,
mountains and the city far below, and the beautiful old redwood walls
glowed in the sunlight. We were shown through a spacious apartment on the
lower floor with connecting library, separate entrance and separate patio.
Two staircases led upward to a long hall opening into two Separated
bedrooms and baths, and at the end of the hall was-- yes a second living
room, opening out onto a second patio screened by trees, and redwood
fencing.
"Built on two acres of
beautifully landscaped grounds, I began to understand what the agent had meant
by saying, 'she wouldn't split', for on one acre stood a large swimming
pool and pool house completely separated from the main house but
undoubtedly belonging to it. It did, indeed, seem to be an impossible
situation as we did not want two acres of highly taxable property plus a
swimming pool a block away from the house.
"Before
we left, I walked through that magnificent living room, once more going up
the stairs to the dining room balcony. I turned, and looking down saw my
husband standing by the fireplace, pipe in hand, with an expression of perfect
satisfaction on his face. I placed my hands on the balcony railing and
watched him for a moment.
"When
we were back in the real estate office, the three agents were ready to
close for the day, but my husband detained them saying, "Lets make
her an offer anyway, Maybe she will split the property. What can we
loose?' One agent left the office without a word. Another said,' The
idea is ridiculous.' The agent we had originally talked to said,' Forget
it. It's a pipe-dream.' My husband is not easily annoyed but when he is,
there is no more stubborn creature on earth. He was now annoyed. He sat
down, slammed his hand on a desk and roared,' It's your business to to
submit offers isn't it?! They agreed that this was so and finally promised
to submit our offer on the property.
"We
left, and that night--- in my imagination--- I stood on that dining
room balcony and looked down at my husband by the fireplace. He looked up
at me and said,' Well honey, how do you like our new home?' I said,'I love
it!'. I continued to see that beautiful room and my husband in it and
'felt' the balcony railing gripped in my hands until I fell asleep.
"The
next day as we were having dinner in my mothers house, the telephone rang
and the agent , in an unbelieving voice, informed me that we had just
bought a house. The owner had split the property right down the middle,
giving us the house and the acre it stood on for the price offered."