Quickkie's Book of Wisdom

INTRODUCTION

The title to this book is not misleading. You are about to read a modern day book of WISDOM, a book that is comprised of short stories about real people who found themselves facing obstacles, challenges, and life threatening situations. Some of the individuals in the short stories hit rock bottom and others suffered from what appeared to be overwhelming physical injuries, career failure, homelessness, poverty and depression.

Unlike the Book of Proverbs in the Bible, which was a collection of sayings that were used in ancient Israel to teach people how to live right, this QUICKKIE BOOK OF WISDOM is about modern times and modern people who teach us about ourselves because of what they had to endure individually. But let me make this clear. We learn from the experiences of the real life people featured in this book and how they overcame the challenge that life set before them, not from any sort of instructor lecturing on theory and telling us what to do and what not to do. Each true story will ignite within you an automatic self-reflection based upon what that person had to face.

For example, there is Heidi, who after a long battle with infertility, did become pregnant only to deliver Jonah abruptly at 25 weeks, tells her real story. Then there is Kalisha, who even after being tormented by Alice and called terrible names, came to save Alice from certain death, risking her own life to do so. Or how Jimmie Howell and his wife Bettye pulled together to enable Jimmie Howell to come back to life after suffering a horrible accident that caused the skin on his body to melt. There are many others, such as the Navy Seal who had to endure humility in his early years, and the Philadelphia Reverend who sought to make family number one amongst his parishioners. There is Old George, a WWII veteran, who never spoke much about the war, but would share wisdom on politics, history and about everything else, and Shawn O’Hara, who was homeless at 12 years old, and the story of Gabriel Abood, a mix-race baby raised by her grandfather. Then there is the wisdom of Mrs. Shifra Hendrie, who shares with us what it was like to be an adolescent and how Kabbalah helps us to keep in mind the paradigm of transformation teaching what goes down must come up. In the difficult wipeout periods of our lives we see with our own eyes that what might appear bad may transform into something good. Such is the true story of Wilma Mae Atkins, a single mom with three children, homeless and with no job. The following pages are loaded with such real life stories that leave an indelible imprint on the reader’s life. Consequently, these true life stories require your deliberation and should not be read in haste.

A Book of Wisdom and Short Stories -- Why?

In today’s culture of high-tech, social media, the art of letter writing or story telling have become rare and often extinct. Yet, who would not sit by a camp fire to listen to an elder tell about a true life adventure story? The mere opportunity to experience the excitement and enjoyment of being there, listening to the story being told, would cause almost everyone to shut off all electronic media to avoid being disturbed as the story teller captures our undivided attention, igniting within us an unmatched feeling of adventure.

There is no better way to learn than through the method of being taught by story telling. Nor, I might add, is there a more enjoyable, fun way to study.

This QUICKKIE BOOK OF WISDOM is all about presenting true life stories in a manner that will make you see the teachings we can glean from each true story the book contains. And it is a fun read! Nothing boring here.

In our lifetime we all experience important events. Some are enjoyable, but others appear to be hardships. Nonetheless, all of these events do transpire and become part of us. At the time of the events taking place it is often impossible to conceptualize all of the eventualities of each and every aspect and the possible consequences that will attach and become part of us. These events appear to sometimes alter the course that we are on. Even though, at that time, we cannot see the good that may come from that certain event, or to determine how matters will come to pass to their absolute finality. We must never forget that what goes down must come up. We can look at the ugly caterpillar and study the almost unbelievable transformation that takes place before our very eyes as the caterpillar transforms from the ugly caterpillar into the beautiful butterfly. Yet the beautiful butterfly is the same living being that was once the ugly caterpillar. The caterpillar, transforming into a very beautiful butterfly, is a real life miracle that we can all observe. It symbolizes our journey in life.

We tend to take things like this for granted, but this QUICKKIE BOOK OF WISDOM makes us think. The following short stories remind you just what is important. Through the short stories contained in this book, we are able to do a reset, a step back from the hustle and bustle of everyday life. Think about the priceless bounty that each story in this book contains.

Put yourself, or try to, into the shoes of the person about whom the story is told. Imagine their feelings as the short story progresses from start to finish. At the end of each story, think about what you have just read. What did you glean from the story? How can you relate to the person the story is about?

The implication is that every single page of this QUICKKIE BOOK OF WISDOM should be carefully and meticulously reasoned upon by the reader. If this is done, the reader will take from each page an enormous amount of wisdom.

There is the acknowledgment that transformation is always a real possibility, no matter what the circumstances are.

Want to feel encouraged? Kick depression out? Develop new joy? - READ ON!

The first few pages draw an analogy between the ugly caterpillar and someone so down on their luck that they cannot make sense as to why they were even born. Don’t skip these pages. Then come the true life stories that are sure to impact upon your life.

Let the journey begin!

NO MAGIC BUT A PLAIN OLD FASHIONED MIRACLE

Quickkie the Caterpillar is a Real Life Miracle that everyone can experience.

Yes, Quickkie the Caterpillar guarantees that you will see a real life miracle with your eyes. Not Magic! This is going to be your personal opportunity to observe this Miracle.

But, before the Miracle, first comes the story.

Quickkie the Caterpillar had witnessed some of his caterpillar friends sprayed with insect killing chemicals, others set on fire and still others crushed when stepped on. Everyone Hates Me! He said to himself. People love dogs, cats, horses and birds, even snakes, but no one loves me. Quickkie cried out: I’m a reject failure. Quickkie crawled up a tree and cried himself to sleep, wondering to himself why God made him. What possible purpose could there have been to make Quickkie? God does not make mistakes . . . Does he?

The morning came and Quickkie awoke before sun up. Down the tree he crawled and, once in the garden, he began eating everything in sight. This was not new. It was Quickkie’s daily routine. Wake up, go to work, and eat, eat, eat all the foliage in sight. Quickkie’s diet consisted of all the plant leaves he could find. Quickkie ate them all. Then he would crawl back up the tree and go to sleep. Once again, Quickkie was able to avoid insect killing chemicals, avoid being stepped on or being burned up by angry farmers. He had survived another day. Now it was time to go to sleep.

Quickkie said a prayer to God before closing his eyes and going to sleep.

Quickkie’s prayer was a simple one that came right from the heart.

God, I feel so sad and so alone. I saw my caterpillar friend, Herbie, get stepped on and crushed. UGH! That was ugly. Later on, I saw my caterpillar friend, Melvin, sprayed with insect killing chemicals. Poor Melvin. He shriveled up and died right there. My other caterpillar friend, Oliver, was set on fire with his girlfriend, Mary. Poof - both burned up! Nothing but some ashes was left. I was almost crushed by the farmer whose garden I was eating in, but he missed me. I hid under a plant leave and escaped. God, what good am I? You know, I lost my first home in that rose bush and now have lost most of my family and friends. Every day is a struggle for me, and I am sad. I just don’t know why you predetermined this life for me. Every single moment is filled with stress. What good am I?

GOOD NIGHT GOD.

EVERYTHING HAS ITS HOUR

While Quickkie slept, God and Divine Providence were at work.

When Quickkie awoke in the morning, he felt strange. He wasn’t hungry anymore and felt light-headed. In fact, he felt even more tired now than before he went to sleep. And, something else was new. He found he could create a silk-like substance. WOW! Quickkie had an idea. He would build a cocoon and go to sleep. Quickkie began to work. All day long he worked at building his new home, one strip at a time of the silk-like thread. Round and round he went, weaving the cocoon. Where Quickkie learned how to build this cocoon he had no idea. It was just born into him, he guessed. But, Quickkie was good at it and the cocoon was almost finished. A little more weaving of the silk-like thread substance and he was done.

Quickkie looked around when he realized he left no opening for him to get out. Oh well … Quickkie thought. I’ll just go to sleep for now, and when I wake up I’ll eat a hole in my cocoon for an entrance and exit. Quickkie was very, very tired. He had never been this tired before. Never! So off to sleep Quickkie went. How comfortable was this cocoon - soft as silk and no pesky birds to worry about. As Quickkie fell off to sleep, he whispered softly to God: Goodnight, God. Oh, Please tell me, what good am I?

Most people know that if you eat an unripe apple it often causes stomach aches. God has established a time and a purpose for everything. It was God that made Quickkie a caterpillar and God who instilled in Quickkie how to build his cocoon. No one taught Quickkie how to do this. One day he just knew. It was time by God’s own Divine clock.

Why be afraid? God has planned it, so it will be exactly as God destined it.

God can override any difficult circumstance.

Quickkie had to trust in God, even when the circumstances did not look promising. He saw his friends die, as well as his family. The farmers tried to crush him, and the birds tried to eat him. In addition to that, Quickkie was ugly. He had a giant size appetite, and no one liked him. None of this looked promising at that moment.

Now, you have to admit, he did not have a lot to be happy about, or did he? Well, Quickkie had no idea what God had planned for him. Quickkie could not even dream of the miracle about to happen to him. Quickkie was an ugly caterpillar, hated by almost everyone. Even little girls scream when they see a caterpillar.

Living under those conditions with such extreme daily stress and with no rainbow or hope in sight, Quickkie could easily have just given up. But Quickkie had faith and he talked his prayer to God. He could not understand the world he lived in, or why everyone hated him and tried to crush him. A phenomenal unknown strength was provided to Quickkie when he faced difficult obstacles and his daily stress. Now, in his cocoon, he would experience a difficult transitional period from ugly hungry caterpillar to the sleeping, peaceful caterpillar who was being transformed.

QUICKKIE’S ASPIRATION

What you can detect here is Quickkie’s desire for change in his life. Although an ugly, hated caterpillar, he accepted his situation and continued on doing what he could do. He never quit trying to go on and on. Although Quickkie had no idea what was in store for him, he knew he had to go on.

FROM THE UGLY, THE STRESS AND THE HATED COMES THE MIRACLE

Remember how Quickkie ended his prayer to God?

What good am I?

Quickkie was not giving up, not throwing in the towel. He was just asking God a simple question. What good am I?

Only God knew why Quickkie was born a caterpillar, and only God knew that Quickkie would one day become a beautiful butterfly. It is a miracle to watch a caterpillar become a butterfly.

WHY CAN’T I BE HAPPY?

You can imagine how sad, depressed and alone Quickkie must have felt as he closed his eyes to go to sleep that first day in his cocoon. Little did Quickkie realize that when he closed his eyes that day, it would be the last time he would do so as a caterpillar.

All Quickkie’s depression and sadness, all of the stress, all of his fears, were about to be nothing but history-just a memory. Who could achieve the level of transformation from a sad and depressed state of mind to one that suddenly produced joy, happiness, a new future filled with hope and good health, except with God’s helping hand? In Quickkie’s life, God had already predetermined that Quickkie would be born an ugly caterpillar and that he would experience all of the hatred everyone had towards caterpillars. He would also experience the sadness and the expression of feeling worthless and without hope of ever amounting to something good. After all, the entire world hates caterpillars, and Quickkie was born a caterpillar. God had predetermined that Quickkie was to be born a caterpillar. It was Quickkie’s mission.

Each one of us does come to this world with the express purpose of fulfilling a mission. That mission is given to us by God. Some of us will live long healthy lives; some of us will pass on early in that life. The very length of our life depends on the time required to complete that mission. Although this may be somewhat mind boggling, the Divine plan that we must complete and for which we were born does determine our set of circumstances here on earth. Everything, not Almost Everything, is willed upon us by God.

So, when Quickkie prayed to God and asked: What good am I?, he was actually asking God why God even bothered to create him. What was Quickkie’s purpose for living here on earth?

Have you, or do you, now feel this way? Have you ever asked yourself: What good am I? Have you ever silently asked this in a prayer to God? It is not a bad idea to consider this question. In life, depression and despair all result when one considers life unbearable and all hope is gone. This is often the big dead end that one feels when no solution or answer is visible. Once hope is gone, then this is the equivalent to having a foot in the grave and falling into the pit.

Quickkie felt this way when he asked God: What good am I?, as he drifted off to sleep in his cocoon. Those words, that prayer, has special meaning to each and everyone on earth at some point in their lives. Whether you are unemployed, lost your home, divorced, lost a loved one, lost your business, lost your dignity or your family, lost your career, lost your purpose in life, it’s all the same. Life is unbearable when you lose all hope and when you seem like you are about to go under.

WHAT GOOD AM I?

Quickkie asked God: What good am I? And yes, he was sad and depressed. But Quickkie had HOPE! Grant you that Quickkie did not have the answer then to that question, but he had hope.

Knowing God and Divine Providence, Quickkie knew that there was no situation on earth that God couldn’t eliminate and order divine help to our rescue. The element Quickkie possessed was that of faith. God had a plan for him.

So, what could possibly make Quickkie happy?" One might say it would take a real miracle. After all, Quickkie is an ugly caterpillar. What should Quickkie expect?

Don’t forget, please never, ever forget, that God does listen to, and does see, and does provide for all of the creatures on earth. The hard part is not to give in to defeat.

For Quickkie, the ugly, hated caterpillar, God was going to deliver an incomparable, surprising and transcendent miracle. Quickkie would never be the same ugly caterpillar again. In fact, so magnificent was the miracle, that God made Quickkie into a beautiful butterfly. He would no longer be a caterpillar that everyone hated and tried to step on and crush. Quickkie was transformed, while in his cocoon, into a beautiful, vibrant, multi-colored butterfly. Quickkie’s miracle transformation elevated him from a very sad and depressed creature into a beautiful, joyful, happy and loved by everyone magnificent butterfly. As a butterfly, Quickkie now was one of the most important workers assigned by God to fertilize the seeds of flowers and plants. Quickkie does it as all butterflies do. Quickkie was preserving life on earth as butterflies have done since the very beginning of time. In fact, Quickkie is pollinating seeds so human beings and animals would have flowers and plants and fruits. No one wanted to crush Quickkie now that he was a beautiful butterfly. Now, when people saw Quickkie flying from flower to flower and from plants and trees, all over the area, they just smiled and admired how beautiful he was. Yes, Quickkie had experienced one of God’s miracles. He was born an ugly caterpillar that the farmers wanted to crush and now he was this beautiful butterfly doing pollination work that directly helped the farmers and all human beings and animals.

Whenever you see a beautiful butterfly doing his pollination work on earth, remember Quickkie, and remember that before that beautiful butterfly could become a butterfly, he had to first be born as an ugly, hated caterpillar that everyone wanted to step on and crush.

Would you like to share with someone the real life experience of watching the miracle take place? It is possible for you to actually watch an ugly caterpillar become a very beautiful butterfly before your own eyes. Witness this real life miracle. Don’t live your life without observing this miracle with your own eyes.

* * * * * * * *

WHO ARE YOU?

Can you identify with Quickkie and his caterpillar years, when he lived not knowing what God’s plan was, asking himself that nagging question we could also ask God? What good am I? This is the question we must come face to face with as Quickkie did in this story.

Quickkie can be you and me at different stages of our life. No matter how bad it looks now for you, do not lose hope that God will allow these caterpillar times to pass in due time, and your butterfly years to take over. Quickkie the caterpillar never lost hope. He asked God a question: What good am I? These words served as the beckoning call coming from deep within Quickkie’s inner self. Don’t be afraid to ask