WALKING IN THE WONDER

FOREWORD I am so honored to have this opportunity to write the Foreword to Jannie Wright’s Walking in the Wonder. It causes me to reflect on some of the most moving writing I have encountered. That is saying something because I majored in English Lit. Jannie’s words turn rapidly into emotional brilliance. I guarantee you a kaleidoscopic experience. The background is alight with love and bits of sparkling anecdotes re-arranging themselves into a constant display of bright emotional stories. Turn the page as you would twist a kaleidoscope, and you will discover a new and entrancing view of life. You will laugh. You will sigh. You will cry. You will cry as you recall incidents in your own life. You will dig deeply into your own emotions, which may have been suppressed, to find yourself in tears but not in sorrow. Why? Because here you have found a soul who magically transports human experiences into print in a way that lets the reader feel like a participant in each gently unfolding journey. Chaucer was a great story teller. Shakespeare was a consummate playwright. Emerson inspired us. Jannie draws up deep emotions many of us have repressed in our efforts to cope with life. In her own charming way, she manages to turn our feelings into an exuberant and majestic tribute to life itself. Here you will meet a sincere and loving soul who shares with you a rainbow of inspiring true stories. Many of these are richly infused with what some call coincidence and others term “synchronicity.” Carl Jung, the Swiss psychologist, discussed synchronicity at length, but deliberately decided not to give it a clear definition. To quote from Jung: “Causality is the way we explain the link between two successive events. Synchronicity designates the parallelism of time and meaning between psychic and psychophysical events which scientific knowledge so far has been unable to reduce to a common principle.” Jannie, however, plunges right into the matter with many examples of unexplained coincidences. I leave it to the reader to decide whether Jannie’s stories cause us to pause and consider more closely the parallelism, the synchronicity, of many events in our own lives. You love her and life when you finish this remarkable book. Frank L. McKibbin, author and columnist September 25, 2010 INTRODUCTION Congratulations to you for choosing to reach for this lovely book. Open to any page, and you will see the insight of my dear friend of 50 years. Go ahead—I’ll wait right here for you…. Thanks for coming back. What did you think? I believe that Jannie sees significant messages connecting to her life as she lives that adventure each day. Not many of us can do that! Often, in the stories that follow, when it seemed an adventure was finished, a place where most people might choose to stop, Jannie took one more step in kindness and outrageous hope…and then a miracle happened. The 15-year-old girl I met at summer camp at Doane College in Crete, Nebraska 50 years ago, made an “instant connection” with me. We even share the same birthday. Although we came from very different areas (She lived in what I believed to be the BIG city of Omaha, and I came from a farm in the rural community of Seward), our identical view of life was extraordinary. Jannie shared her miracle stories with me over time, and she will do the same with you in the pages of Walking in the Wonder. Keep this book nearby. You will open it many times as your ultimate Power speaks to you, whatever you choose to call that Power. Jannie has spent her life observing people, listening to them, and trying to understand what makes each one uniquely who they are. She is always optimistic. Everything in this book has a positive aspect to it. People are more alike than different. Yet, it is the unique talents and personal qualities of each individual that makes humankind so exciting to study—a rainbow of beauty and possibility. Jannie is ecumenical in her outlook, and appreciates truths found in a variety of different spiritual beliefs. She believes there is One Creator of us all, referred to by many names. Every day and every moment is another new adventure for her. Things that seem trivial and everyday become events to be celebrated. Loss becomes just a temporary lapse in the grand scheme of our lives. During my 40-year nursing career, I have witnessed my fellow humans passing to the other side. It can be awesome, comforting and very spiritual. Loved ones do return with messages to guide our steps when we stumble. Love is wisdom. Every life has its mountaintop and valley experiences. When you finish Walking in the Wonder, you will feel you’ve been on a vacation in the Swiss Alps. Consider this book the diary of a friend who experienced some uncanny miracles of synchronicity, and with each said, “WOW! That’s interesting!” She recorded many of them, and now shares them with you. Whatever your own thoughts about life, feel free to pour yourself a soothing cup of tea, coffee or cocoa and settle in for a fun adventure. You will find a warm, cozy place to relax within these pages of Walking in the Wonder. Judy Nagel, RN (Retired) Former Director of Nursing, Long Term Care Michigamme, MI