Leslie Flynn, a widow who moves to rural Nevada after her husband dies, has a mystical experience through which she is given three mandates by God, setting into motion a series of events that plummet her into the worlds of the Native American casino industry, a hi tech business magnate, and the Vatican hierarchy. Leslies experience begins when her duties as a travel writer take her to Bishop, California, to visit the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Trees, the oldest living things on Earth. She is drawn to the Matriarch, the largest of the Bristlecones alive today. As she approaches the tree, she is aware that she is on holy ground. She is drawn into the tree where she traces her entire matriarchal lineage, witnesses the strength and power of her ancestors and develops a great appreciation for the gifts she has received from each of them.