Foreword to my current writing project: The Road Back from Nowhere

It is hard to understand the twists and turns we encounter in life. Some simply write it off as “God’s will.” Others argue that the path we travel is the result of choices. And yet there are those who place the reason on fate, serendipity, or kismet. Regardless of the why or how, when we one day realize we are “not in Kansas anymore,” it is difficult to comprehend exactly how we arrived at “here.”

Whether good or bad, the challenge becomes “what now.” Some lament their current state and sit down, never to get up again. Life just passes them by. Others rebel, thinking they have been cheated or duped into something less than what they thought was coming to them. But there are others who make a conscious decision to move; move forward, up, ahead, toward the prize or goal, reaching for the horizon to see what lies beyond.

There are, however, those rare individuals who have been following the path and realize life may have been a long journey in the same direction. Without anything to base it on, or guarantee of the outcome, they hold fast to hope. A dream lives within them which they refuse to let die. It’s not always in their conscious thoughts, but it is never far either. Almost daily reminders, the memories fuel their anticipation that one day, somehow, something will change.

And then it does! You wonder, “Why has it taken this long.” But in the same millisecond of thought you exclaim, “It all happened so fast.” Finally, suddenly! Wearied longing coupled with exuberant jubilation. You weep because the end of frustration has been eclipsed by heart-pounding joy. Like encountering an oasis after long, hot days in the desert. You realize you survived but feel almost guilty about drinking so much of the cool water. Why were you allowed to reach this point of elation while others still struggle to wake up in the morning?