Love of Wisdom: Spiritual, Progressive Philosophy in Verse (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781548013615)

Born in the Redwoods of coastal Northern California in the little blue collar town of Fort Bragg, my early years were trouble-free times of active, youthful exuberance. I was very much a rural kid, playing with friends, catching lizards and snakes, exploring the forests, shooting bb guns, swimming in the river and ocean and eating blackberries off the bush until my hands were stained purplish-black and my stomach ached. Eventually my father was transferred to a more urban area of CA and I gradually transformed into a video gamer with a very strong creative streak. In my adolescence I used to concoct elaborate games for friends that were engaging enough to capture their attention for hours on end, with some of these games centered around toys, and others, the more popular ones, put to paper, which I called "paper games." As I matured I came to the same conclusion that many young, observant people come to: money is the root of freedom, and I had to do everything possible to put myself in the position to have what I wanted, so I could do and be who I wanted. This culturally-pervasive mindset dominated my outlook through most of college, during which I attended the University of California at Santa Barbara and studied Business Economics, and afterwards during my foray into the real estate business. I was very much motivated by these conventional ambitions and, through them, highly self-motivated to pursue what most consider the hallmarks of "success: " a lucrative career, the socioeconomic rank and all the trappings. I'd begun developing doubts during my last couple collegiate years, however, that following this traditional path was what I was meant to do; that it was the best use of my abilities and that, perhaps, it contributed to the problems of the world. Later, as my spiritual consciousness grew and I began to sense that 'listening to your heart' was more than mere fleeting emotion, but a tapping into a truer, fuller form of self, my collegiate doubts began to crystalize along with my ideology and convictions, and everything changed for me. I came into myself and began to harness a sense of purpose, knowing that I was meant to translate the spiritual messages I received which, combined with my intellectual inspection of the world, lead me to some profound conclusions about the nature of existence and the greedy heart of western culture compromising our greatest collective potential. My books of poetry, blog and a coming novel offer my proposed solutions