Unforgettable Things I Have Heard

November 22, 2023

We invite you to this series of Daily Reflections on "Unforgettable Things I Have Heard."

I have been shocked, saddened, flabbergasted, shamed, delighted, touched, mesmerized, angered and enlightened by many things I've heard. We seem to remember things that affect our centers of intelligence and make deep impressions on our soul.

When I was nearly three, I wanted to ride the next-door neighbor's German Shepherd. The kind neighbor said, "Dogs do not let children ride them." His statement was so iron-clad, so final and so hopeless. In my heart, I believed the neighbor didn't see the fantastic possibility of my having a horse just my size. Soon thereafter, we moved to another city and, by knowing other dogs, I realized that dogs were nothing like horses.

As I grew up, many of my ideas were impossible. Yet I couldn't stop their flow; miraculously, some were realized. Once, I had the idea of using wooden blocks to raise my electric train tracks to make a train trestle. Dad said it couldn't be done. I nearly believed him because, attempt after attempt, the train fell. But I kept trying. Finally, one day, it worked.

Once, I got an idea from a television circus show: The Big Top. Clowns and acrobats bounced high in the air from huge see-saws. I made such a see-saw with a 2x12 plank. My skinny friend Freddie said, "This won't work." Yet amid Freddie's doubts, he stood on the plank's lower end, hoping to ascend like the acrobats on TV. From the swing set, chubby me jumped down onto the opposite end of the plank to propel Freddie’s body upward. The idea worked, but Freddie rocketed so far up that he descended head down onto his collar bone. Some of my ideas worked but were not to be repeated.

About fourteen years ago, ICB co-founder Reverend Susan Sloan had an idea for me. She said, “Joe you have been teaching the Enneagram for years and have tremendous amounts of hand-outs for your workshops and conferences. They are too extensive to keep printing and too much material for people to keep up with. You need to put these into a book.” My nay-sayer said, “That’s impossible,” but Susan’s words touched my soul so deeply that I began writing Becoming Conscious.

Inquiry: What ideas of yours does your nay-sayer deem impossible?

Dear God,

Thank you for giving us ideas that make a way when they seem impossible. Amen.

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