Small Important Things
Spiritual Fiction for the Emerging Man
by
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Chapter 1: Ding Dong
Ding Dong. There was the customary 30-second pause that comes after the doorbell rings. Then the vibrations and shift in air pressure as the occupant comes to unlatch the lock and open the door. “Yes?” “I’m the teacher you’ve been asking for.” This was the first time they had ever met. …If clarity had a colour… He thought. A slight spontaneous laugh escaped his mouth as he asked the very reasonable question. “I’m sorry, do I know you?” “Yes.” There was a seemingly permanent natural smile on his face. A pause of a few seconds began to lengthen. The eyes of the guest held calm and unwavering as the discomfort and awkwardness of the man’s grew. The novelty of the situation started to wane for him with that silence. The spontaneity of the laughter turned into a nervous sputtering. “Uhh…ok…uhm, and how do I know you?” Another slight pause, perhaps four seconds, but it felt an eon for the man as he fidgeted and made a thousand unconsciously conscious movements. It was a beautiful condo. Dark stone façade, recently renovated, but keeping intact the early 20th century character. Cast iron railings with intricate foliage patterns leading to the front door, a deep fire engine red. Purchased by the owner because he thought that a home should have a red door as its entryway. Plus, it was the only house on the block to have the distinction. A distinction he took a strange and subtle pleasure from. Overlooking Parc LaFontaine in Montreal’s Plateau Mont-Royal, it also had the distinction of being in one of the trendiest areas in town. The four seconds were stifling to the man. His grip to the inside handle of the door had grown vice-like. “That clear calling in your mind that resonates guidance and protection, even when everything else around and inside you seems to be drowning in confusion. Just as you know that voice and clear calling with fullness and trust, you know me.” You could have heard a pin drop in his mind. For the briefest, most beautiful of moments, there was silence in his head. There was space. There was soothing respite from the constant deluge that was relentless in his mind. It was, however, only the briefest of moments.
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About the Book
The unasked, unanswered (and quite possibly unconscious) question on most males’ minds is “How do I become a man?” or “Where do I begin?”
Take Daniel Shaughnessy, for example. By conventional standards, the thirty-one-year-old was successful and had everything he needed to be happy. Except for happiness.
Internally, he was emotionally unfulfilled and incapable of meaningful intimate relationships; suffering from a subtle but consistent melancholic ignorance as to why he felt melancholic in the first place; plagued by a persistent lament: “Oh, God, why can’t this all just cease?” It was a silent humiliation, not always in the spotlight, but definitely lurking in the shadows.
And when one chance encounter presented another option to stop the suffering? Well, then Daniel came face to face with the fears, insecurities, and doubts that were at the heart of his ache. Because we find that sometimes the greatest obstacle and enemy of a rich and satisfying life … is our own self.
Set in the beautiful, bustling, and eclectic city of Montreal, Quebec, Small Important Things is an educational journey through the life of a man who didn’t quite feel like a man but had a deep-seated desire to initiate himself into manhood.
So if the question “Where do I begin to become a man?” resonates, then the answer is, ding-dong—right here.
About the Author
At the age of 18 Paul packed two bags and traveled the world for the next decade and a half. Finding jobs such as a forest firefighter, aircraft painter, waiter, massage therapist, surf bum, treeplanter to name a few. Studying and instructing yoga since his early twenties, he now lives and works in Montreal, Quebec. www.paulbroomfield.com