beginning the journey

Excerpt

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Have you ever asked yourself questions similar to these?  Where did you go to find answers?  Were you satisfied with the anwsers?

These questions are common to many of us, and they become critical to indiviuals who feel it is time to begin a journey.  We generally don't know it at the time - that we are beginning a journey, or the nature of that journey,  It is a journey, a spiritual journey.  It can happen at any point in your life and in any setting.  You may be a person who attends the services of a particular religion, or you may see yourself as being completely non-religious.  The call of the spirit is the soul reminding us of out primary purpose in life.

See?  Words like "soul" immediately enter the conversation.  What is this "soul"?  Do you have one?  If so, where does it show on the x-rays?

This book discusses these kinds of questions and provide some insights into the nature of the spiritual journey that many of us are called to focus upon during this life.  I've written it in a dialog kind of style, as if we're hanging out around the kitchen table and you've just asked me, "Tim, how is it you are the way you are?"  And I attempt to provide you with an answer.  In fact, I've been asked just that question a fair number of times, and as I've worked on providing some comments, they've generated a fair range of responses.  Some people are offended for the thoughts are too different from their own, some suspect the sixties were too good to me (not true), and some find the insights useful.  So, this book is for those in search of answers or different ways at looking at this process we call life.

Be warned that I deliberately use words like "dance" and "play" and "melodrama" to talk about events in our lives that are very importants and typically dramatic and potentially extremely serious.  That's because we need to be reminded of who we are, and to maintain some perspective.  I'm in the camp that says, "we are a spiritual being in a physical body rather than a body that has a spirit."  The order is critical to one's perspective.  And if we cannot discover sufficient perspective, the dark side of life can simply become over-whelming.

I believe there is hope and joy in life.  Sometimes we need some assistance in discovering that dynamic.  We certainly are confounded with an abundance of information, and the 'overload light" comes on with great regularity.  There are so many books, articles, plays, shows, movies, emails and phone calls, all demanding our undivided attention.  Just what should we focus on?  What is the ultimate meaning that should be a part of regular reflection and consideration?  The answer to these questions are found along the way of the spiritual journey.

As you'll discover, I strongly believe there is not one proper spiritual journey that negates all others.  The good news is that the billions of people playing on this planet have a billion options from which to choose.  The bad news is we have to choose.  We have to consider "stuff" and make decisions.  The tooth fairy is out of business!

I invite you to "muse" your way through this book.  Feel free to read it in secionts of from beginning to end.  Read a bit, put it down, pick it up, share it with friends, discuss it, weigh it and come to your own conclusions.  Find your truths, and if someone should ask, be willing to share.  Enjoy.

"This book is for all the people sitting with a cup of coffee or tea, pondering life's questions and not being satisfied with the standard answers.  Picture a campfire or your favorite coffee spot while asking a good friend, 'Does life have a purpose?'  Then let the dialog begin."
                                                                           -Tim Dunkin, Author

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