Jim Moffett:  

Who is anyone, really? If I had to write my life's story, it would have to sell in the "fiction" section. I had to learn some hard lessons and left a trail of hurt people along the way. School never prepared us/me for what living was really about. It wasn't the "Brady Bunch" or "My Three Sons". I knew I wanted to live my life my way, but found out life has its own way of living. For me it was frustrating, I got angry, and became mean. Didn't take crap from anyone and there was only one way of doing things, my way. I had no skills in compromising, let alone listening, so many a hard lesson was learned and being with me was no joy, to say the least. The more controlling I got, the more resistance I encountered. The more resistance I encountered, the more controlling I got. I had created a self defeating cycle that perpetuated a constant struggle, but I was not aware of it, let alone gave any thought to it. Two marriages later, several relationships, and 4 kids, I hit bottom again for the umpteenth time. I was in the middle of divorce #2, lost a trucking business and went bankrupt, I lost my home, had gotten fired 9 months into working back in a factory again, could not find employment, slowly sold off what I could to pay bills, and was down to my last $36 in my checking account. Then I had a realization as I questioned "why live like this if this is all there is?" I sat at my table in deep thought and realized that my problems were not all "them" and everybody else, but that I was part of the problem. My perspective in life to that point was "I was going to do it my way, which WAS the only way." I basically had grabbed the tiger by the tail and I was not letting go. I got torn up by its claws and teeth, but I was as tough and as mean as that tiger was and the pain and bleeding was just part of dealing with it. Unfortunately, many other people had to deal with the pain because I saw them as an extension of my thinking,"my way was the only way" and because they were with me they were not afforded the option to think any different than "my way". I was 36 at this time this hit me. Call it an epiphany or simply an awareness that I was the cause of many of my own problems. Now this is not a story leading to a "God" moment, but I did believe in God (as it was my upbringing) and I prayed for help and wanted to know the meaning of life because up to that poi...Expand for more