Table of Contents - A Different Kind of Sentinel

A Different Kind Of Sentinel: An Overview

The solution to the problem of evil lies in the reestablishment of a relationship to one's own soul. As the self grows closer to the soul, this creative union eventually gives birth to a whole new way of life, which no longer has any room for evil. And yet the very troublesome question remains, how does one go about accomplishing such a mythological task?

Because the way to establish this new order on earth between the animal kingdom and the spiritual realm has remained as elusive to mankind as the so-called "missing link", the author is overcome by a compulsion to find it. As his book, A Different Kind of Sentinel, so aptly shows, he doesn't find the way until he is forced to return to the interior of his being, to play with those parts of his personality which have yet to evolve.

As the story unfolds, it is through his dreams that the author learns of his true vocation in life. Confused yet, as to where to go from here, he starts by keeping a journal. Through his first entry into the realm of the imagination as a writer, does he encounter those aspects of himself with which he had lost contact—his soul, a monk, and a wise old man.

While these encounters help him to focus his attention on a crusade to save his soul, a task which initially takes him back to a confrontation with his own animal past, he is encouraged to write down whatever he sees along the way, if he wishes to free himself from the beast and give birth to who he really is.

To distinguish himself from the rest of the pack, he realizes he will have to dive deeper into the interior of his being than he has ever dove before. Through the use of a combination of real-life experiences and images, he expounds upon the fine line that divides us from our animal past. And he wonders how those who have failed to evolve emotionally, beyond the level of an animal, will judge their own humanity.

Having sworn to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, with God's help does he delve into the events and circumstances in his past which led him to pursue who he really is. Along the way, he encounters, within himself, a rebellious spirit, who compels him to act contrary to conventional wisdom. Eventually forced to go where his fathers had gone before him, like Jonah, is he swallowed up by the beastly side of nature.

In his struggle to awaken from the Big Sleep—God cast over the original being before it was split into man and woman—he unwittingly takes up the search for soul. With his initiation into the darker side of Mother Nature, he encounters a young man, who awakens him to his own feelings. Through his interactions with the embodiment of these feelings within himself, he learns about the subtle differences between them and his emotions. Before these indentured servants are transferred to different stations, he realizes that this new entity within himself has entered his awareness for the sole purpose of raising his level of consciousness.

But what this new entity is or what she wants from him doesn't become any clearer to him until his indentured servitude raises the ire of the animal side of his nature. With the realization that he is carrying, within himself, the next stage in the evolution of mankind, he wanders abreast of conventional behavior. So does he find union, albeit on a very unconscious level, with his feelings.

In the search to satisfy his appetite for self-knowledge, he encounters a young intellectual, who encourages him, before stepping out of his life, to resist becoming an animal as have so many of their fellow shipmates. From him does he learn that the real struggle lies within himself—within the very fantasies or delusions which have convinced so many of his fellow countrymen that what they need is more of what is out there in nature.

Starved for the kind of knowledge that only comes from self-denial, he decides to fast until he is released from his servitude to the beastly side of nature. What he encounters, is the very truth of his being, which imposes upon him the thorny task of finding the real reason why he so badly wants out of the belly of this whale.

With the realization that his being has a will of its own, more powerful than anything he has ever encountered, is he drawn deeper into the conflict between his self and the darker side of Nature, both within and without himself. So powerful is this new entity in his life that he is forced to abandon the ways of the world for those of his own being. Thus does he rescue from a state of near total unconsciousness, his first impressions of this new entity in his life.

Realizing that she must be obeyed one way or the other, as an unconscious animal or a conscious human being, in the ongoing search for his true identity, he stumbles upon the true meaning of forgiveness, of which he is in great need for his continued transgressions against this spirit on the metaphysical plane. At the same time, he is punished for his transgressions on the physical plane. Seeing how difficult it is to serve two masters, he picks up on a cue from one of his superiors, to continue his passive resistance, with the hope that he might get released from the belly of this whale sooner than he had anticipated.

Having encountered, early on, in the image of the Wise Old Man, the more masculine side of the triune nature of his being, for the first time ever does he encounter the feminine side of the Trinity, first in the image of his soul, and then later, in the form of Wisdom, her whom the Creator had "poured out upon all His works, upon all the living according to His gift." Sir. 1:9-10. Ignoring the wishes of his soul, he opts to transfer to another division where, in his inability to escape the designs of this greater will, he gets caught up in the rebelliousness of the times anyway. Only he doesn't get back in touch with what he is truly feeling until he encounters the doldrums of the South China Sea, for it is here that he experiences the triune nature of his being and its commandments upon his soul—to stand tall that others might find their way back to the truth of their beings, the end of evolution.

In the continuing struggle to gain more insight into his life, he realizes he needs the help of someone else besides his self. With no one else to turn to, but his own faculties, he enlists the aid of one of the most unlikely guides ever, the personification of his intuitive abilities. Through this mentor and his mentor's daughter, the embodiment of his soul or feeling side of his personality, and the music of the times, he is finally given a glimpse of who he might be.

Having sought the counsel of the highest faculties known to man, he finally lets go of his self, long enough to venture back down into his imagination, where he learns how to live out the meaning of one's myth rather than the myth itself. After he destroys the negative image of his mother, which for years has kept him from getting back in touch with what he genuinely feels or values most, he unwittingly exposes his demons. In the shadow of his latent intellectual abilities, he destroys the first of three demons, which now allows him to rely on the force of truth, rather than brute force, to accomplish his goals in life.

Once he realizes that nirvana is to be found by retreating inwardly to reflect upon his own being, he continues his journey through this mythical world of ours, ever in search of the man God has intended him to become. There he experiences the Second Coming in his encounter of the Second Person of the Trinity.

Driven by the harsh realities of the conflict in Vietnam to penetrate ever more deeply into the realm of the imagination, for the insight into his life he still so desperately needs, he destroys the terrible image of his stepfather which, for years, has kept him from becoming the man, he knows, deep down, he must become.

Fearful of assuming responsibility for his own manhood, he soon runs afoul of the wishes of his soul in his stubborn refusal to simply say no to the Great Gray Whore. As he backslides into his old self again, he finds that he has neither the energy nor the will to go on as he has in the past. Having learned the hard way, that it is the soul which must be followed if ever he wishes to free himself from the clutches of the beast and the religious oppression of his own intellect—the dichotomous result of not listening to her—he encounters the last two demons with which he has yet to deal.

In his inability to see the triune nature nature of his being—how he desires to be one with his body and the creative potential hidden within it, as much as they desire unity with not only each other but his self as well—he stumbles into the Virgin Mary in a vision. As this Holy Spirit shows him the man he must become, he discovers, as his tour of the mind draws to a close, that God is asking him to be a very different kind of sentinel for the house of Uncle Sam.

Forced to return to the womb of his imagination, he falls into the pit of despair when he can't find anything to paint. Only after he is handed the single most important clue to his identity does he emerge from the depths of his imagination with this insight: As the Word became flesh, so must the flesh become Word, and the two of them, one, before he can stand out from the pack with his identity in tact. In other words, must he give flesh to his thoughts and thought to his feelings if he is to gain the insight into himself he seeks.

Left alone with soul for the first time since they met, he suddenly finds himself in Paradise. Having found out where his heart doth lie, in the very thing he fears most, does he overcome his greatest fear, to be alone with soul for any length of time. Forced by his own folly to wed the very source of his fantasies, does he succeed in turning his life over to a higher power.

Given an ultimatum by his soul, after having been expelled from paradise for his continued transgressions against the true nature of his being, he goes off in search of what will bring him back to the Gates of Eden.

On the final leg of the journey back home to who he really is, he encounters the shadow of a young man who opens his eyes to the Great and Holy Spirit behind his search for manhood. Admonished by Her to put an end to the abuse of Her body by him and his fellow countrymen, is he given a glimpse of the end of evolution—the annihilation of the body of mankind as we know it today.

Having regurgitated half the story of the struggle between the upper and lower echelons of his being to hammer out a work of art on the cold and steely anvil of his existence, he finally realizes his goal, the birth of a work of art of indescribable beauty. Not until he catches a glimpse of this newborn child, does he realize the real significance of his story—how many souls he might save from having to go through what he has, by sharing it with them.

Like Jonah, does he rise above his own animality to ride back into Nineveh, at the beck and call of his true nature, to proclaim the good news to his fellow countrymen that the Word has indeed become flesh.