My Mind's Fingers

"My Mind's Fingers - The Words of a Scorpio Rising from Room to Room", is a collection of poems, prose, narratives, and brief essays on life, love, spirituality, living a new life as a sober citizen, and freely passing on the love that has been freely received. The inspiration for this book has come from family, friends, and those "unnamed" characters in my life, but mostly by realizing I lived a lifetime of mistakes and needed to mend those fences. I found the forward momentum needed by seeking, finding, and utilizing the good orderly direction I had received from others, and by believing that a higher power controls all that we do. It's our own thoughts and ego that usually get in the way. Some of the pieces are spiritual, others are inspirational and recovery based, and then there are the ones that are simply words of wisdom... some of which were realized by me, and others that were passed down over the years - spun in my mind's blender, and put down into verse.

The original idea for this manuscript's title was "A Scorpio Rising - Room to Room" a suggestion made by my wonderful wife Laura. I am a Scorpion in the truest sense of the Astrological sign and have frequented the rooms of the program that literally saved my life. On one fateful night by the Grace of God, someone set me straight, and I pulled my head out of my ass, opening my eyes and setting my mind free. As disgusting as that sounds, it is metaphorically what really happened. I was at that jumping off point where I had to change my life and my way thinking about life, or I would have forever doomed myself to a sad existence in that self imposed prison cell controlled by my ego: "The Jailer" The book's title "My Mind's Fingers" comes from a line in a piece entitled "Ocean of Tears" which was seen by my friend Lyn S as a great line to use as a title for that piece, but her idea was so good that I decided to use it as the title of the book instead. All those things combined made this project possible. It started out as a simple collection of inspirational, motivational, and recovery-based pieces which I had written over the years. I would read them occasionally as meditations during the opening of a meeting and I then began to receive requests for copies by people at the meetings. I presented them to the members of the group and would also send out excerpts from pieces I wrote as personal note cards to family and friends. Most of the inspiration for this collection comes from those unnamed characters in my life - some are totally fictitious and some not - at least I think so. And unless otherwise noted, if they were used on the following pages it was done so with the best of intentions and love. The places mentioned are either real or imagined by the author, and if you recognize any of them, then you are laser focused on the same spiritual beam. Any similarities in content or inferred meaning are coincidental and not intentional, and any references to other works of literature and quotes by other authors are credited to them, or used by permission where applicable.

Bob W. is a true New Jersey native, and after a number of geographical "relocations", has retuned to his home state and occupies the family residence in which he was raised. With support of his wife Laura, he has dedicated his life to helping others, both in and out of the world of addiction, recovery, and behavioral health issues. Besides working with others in the twelve step program of Alcoholics Anonymous as a sponsor, he is also on the Board of Directors of a non-profit organization helping those in need of affordable sober living facilities. A.F.A.R. (A Future After Rehab) located in Burlington County New Jersey, is a safe haven for those coming out of treatment centers, working their way back into society, and learning to live clean and sober productive lives. Musician, artist, writer, and a seeker of truth, he has worked to maintain peace of mind through meditation, by practicing patience, love, tolerance, and acceptance, and realizing that the only way to understanding others is to open up his heart to the lives of those around him. The old adage - "To understand another's journey, you must first walk in their shoes", carries a burden of truth - and by giving others a glimpse into the mind of the writer, one can get a sense of what he is attempting to show us on his his journey while he walks the path. Come walk with Bob W. while he takes us on a journey into the imagination and touches on ideas and feelings, some personal, some easily relatable to anyone - whether they are in recovery from substance abuse, remorseful about loss of a loved one, or just want to read a whimsical quip about the experience of living a life as a being... attempting to be human. Bob W. is currently working on his second book titled, "Weekly Meditations for a Daily Reprieve" as a follow up to this endeavor, and is also pulling out all the stops on a book that builds on his view of the world as a place of "un-natural" coincidences full of international intrigue and suspense.