Walk Softly...But Carry A Big Stick !

Hi again everyone. I've been to the mountain again.

 Funny how everytime  I traverse lower into the valley however, and finally ascend back up there , that the view from it's summit is infinitely more beautiful and clear than my memory can readily serve me. And to that end , I am still baffled as to why I repeatedly stray from the direct, tried and tested , clearly chartered course ,that God  has shown us, as the easier softer way to fulfillment in life.

I used to sit at our dinner table with my family in Ireland when I was younger and listen to my parents' sometimes vastly different approaches toward situations by where one would need to use some degree of intuition. And given my propensity for being naturally inquisitive, I not only listened intently but also queried their respective choices. All too often my mother would say something akin to " Never trust anyone til they have proven themselves trustworthy " .
( For the record, and for those of you who DONT  know my mother, she is old-school- Irish from  Co . Tyrone in Northern Ireland and is in posession of one of Ireland's most colorful vocabularies )
 . So for the purposes of this blog you have been spared the ver batum script. 
Meanwhile my father, who spoke three languages fluently and had a working knowledge of a couple more, Would espouse the virtues of being a wee bit more trusting of MOST people in general until they showed some signs of insincerity. He believed that we should hone our skills as sleuths and rely on our innate intuitions while giving the individual ..." The benefit of the doubt with the option of providing them enough rope to hang themselves if needed. " .Sufficed to say that they had slightly varied opinions on how to tread this sometimes trecherous road of chicanery.

This early teaching and intuitiveness has served me well many , many times since those fabled Irish dinnertimes. And There have been times recently where the dinnertimes outnumberd the dinners for many, including myself, but never has my parents' words resonated so vividly as when I most recently interviewed for a job in a medium security prison in a nearby country town.

This story has roots in a conversation I had with a dear friend almost a year ago to the day . I was rearranging my life to immigrate to Austrailia on the promise of employment in Sydney. When asked by her why I was leaving and what was my plan we began a convesation about what I though my purpose was. She ,being equally as spiritually motivated as I, asked a question that was to stay with me , and her im sure ,to this day.
 She asked me , " What do you want to do Mike? What is you passion? What are you good at? "
With as much humility as I knew how to put forth, and exercising an honest assessment of the question, I replied.....".Honestly? You have mentioned before that  you think that when I speak of things Spiritual and of Recovery issues, that I am in my most natural state. That it's as if I were speaking directly from God. Well here's the deal. I know that. And I'm also pretty good carpenter and leader of workers . "
Her reponse was.... " Well then , go do that Mike, and don't look back. "
I smiled and said ." Yeah that'd be great ! If only there was a way to get paid for it. !! " , And then I laughed out loud for a couple seconds..

Fast-forward......A YEAR...

So I struggled through the rest of the year staying with what I was familiar with ; contracting and doing small consulting type things for as much money as I could manage to raise. Needless to say that it wasn't / isn't enough to keep my vessel afloat. A decision was made. I would have to change for good. .AGAIN!! But this time felt different. I had returned from an unexpected and extended stay in Ireland , where I had been sitting vigil with my mother and older brother regarding a medical issue of my brother's. I can't explain it but I knew ,as I was uprooted from my routine and mundane life ,that God was trying to show me sonmeting more. I guess He knew I could now handle it more responsibly. He told me it was time to use the gifts . So often I take THE GIFTS for granted and sadly under utilize them..

Then ..I asked one of my friends to keep a look out for a job. He had an old highschool friend Facebook him about the job in the prison I mentioned to you earlier in this blog. I caled the people up and was invited to interview a week after I called. I accepted and was a wee bit nervous because it was a low-paying job and it was very far away from where I live now and from where my daughter lives here with her mother. It did, however, come with a full benefit package, which would have added up to about another twenty -five perccent of the salary. So with a reluctancy I'm not proud of , but a desire to truly improve myself, I started mentally preparing myself for the meeting.  A couple days before the interview I was speaking with my former bride and related that I was having strong feelings about this job and that I think I really would like to work there. She shared that she knew in her heart hat this was probably because there wer many men in there that could use my brand otf spirituality and recovery. I already knew that that was why I felt that way.

THEN..........

Two days before the interview I decided I would do as any diligent interviewee would do ,and looked on the internet for info about the town and the prison. This is what sealed the fate of  ' THE OMENS '
The proison was a medium security, 1,700 inmate prison that specialiizes in alcohol and drug rehabilitation. !!!!!!
The destiny of me and the prison carpentry shop was obvious now.. !!!!!! Right.? I even thought I heard a message from my Father........ " Mike.. Bloom where you're planted. "  And off I merrily sauntered..

Enter Mom of The Weeping Jester....

The interview went off as planned . By their standards of a plan, that is.. !! They never even asked me any questions nor did they care to peruse my resume. Nor did they care to speak of my gift of recovery experience or the recovery welfare of the men .Instead , as I soon surmised,  they were merely a modular homebuiling company who were usuing the prison system for free labor !!!

 I left there realizing I had been duped. They were required by law to interview so many applicants . But surely the job was earmarked for a local . politically connected man.. But all was not lost. And it's ultimately in God's hands anyway. So I move on to do the next right thing..

YOU ONLY REALLY LOSE IF YOU LOSE THE LESSON ..

I had broken my dry spell and gotten out of my funk. I now have improved and updated my resume and have a cover letter and profile up on Career Builder. com. I will be employed soon . I am downsizing my life. I want to sail a smaller vessel. My greatest posessions are the spirits of the people I have been blessed to have encountered so far. My vessel will never shrink to where there is no room for what God sends me.

I thank God for the lessons at my adolescent dinner table and the contrasting versions of my folks' delivery systems. I believe that there is a great amount of good out there despite the dark and disappointing foibles of us mere mortals.

Till next time..
Be kind . But carry your Shillelagh !!!
Namste.
Weppin Jester