The Peculiar Point of View

By Mary Johnson

Everyone has a point of view. For some, it is a thought or an opinion for a while and can change. For some, it becomes a chosen path for life. Thoughts although unseen can be powerful. Some thoughts evolve into creative dreams and achievements. Depending on a personal point of view, a dream can foster an aspiration. A dream is most often thought to be an image or an emotion occurring during sleep. Some believe dreams are formed by the psych. Still, others feel that dreams can be warnings and even predict future events. Dreams can be pleasant or sad. Regardless of how one might view dreams—everybody has them.

The main character in this story, Walt Norman, wants to become an architect. In his point of view, his dream of being one can be accomplished by the path, he alone chooses to take. He believes in God and reads the word. He prays and seeks direction and answers. Yet he is reluctantly influenced by a recurring night vision. His Christian belief causes him to develop what seems to others to be a peculiar point of view.
Walt is a genius when it comes to architectural design but fails to understand the blueprint of the master designer. He also misinterprets the term peculiar people introduced in 1 Peter 2:9, KJV. Can he fulfill his life-long dream? There are different obstacles that come to block him from reaching his goal. The story has some twists and turns but makes for eye-opening reading.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Apr 30, 2023
• ISBN: 9781669872900

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Copyright © 2023 by Mary Johnson.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,

recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Rev. date: 04/13/2023

Xlibris

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CONTENTS

Prelude

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

PRELUDE

E veryone has a point of view. For some, it is a thought or an opinion for a while and can change. For some, it becomes a chosen path for life.

Thoughts although unseen can be powerful. Some thoughts evolve into creative dreams and achievements. Depending on a personal point of view, a dream can foster an aspiration. A dream is most often thought to be an image or an emotion occurring during sleep. Some believe dreams are formed by the psych. Still, others feel that dreams can be warnings and even predict future events. Dreams can be pleasant or sad.

Regardless of how one might view dreams, everybody has them.

The main character in this story, Walt Norman, wants to become an architect. In his point of view, his dream of being one can be accomplished by the path, he alone chooses to take. He believes in God and reads the Word. He prays and seeks direction and answers, yet he is reluctantly influenced by a recurring night vision. His Christian belief causes him to develop what seems to others to be a peculiar point of view.

Walt is a genius when it comes to architectural design but fails to understand the blueprint of the master designer. He also misinterprets the term peculiar people introduced in 1 Peter 2:9 (KJV). Can he fulfill his lifelong dream? There are different obstacles that come to block him from reaching his goal. The story has some twists and turns but makes for eye-opening reading.

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CHAPTER 1

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I t was late evening, and the park near a housing project was starting to grow dark. Only sporadic beams of daylight defied the increasing darkness and occasionally showed through the dense, treetops of the wooded area. This was a normal scene for the park in the evening. Still, to an unwary traveler, the atmosphere became a little spooky, and traveling through the area in increasing darkness was a little unsettling.

High weeds and ground cover grew on each side of an old, graveled walkway that was slowly disappearing. High weeds can hide a number of things including ones that could leap out from the darkness and frighten someone just passing by. The determined weeds pushed their way up through that graveled dirt, fighting to take back their right to grow there. The battle between invisible sources to create the visible scene was ongoing.

A lone traveler, a young man, was hurrying along the pathway. Total darkness was not a proper setting for anyone to experience in the park alone. Presently, he was successfully finding his way. At times, he appeared to lose his sense of direction. He stopped several times and looked around, as though confused. He started in one direction and then turned back and stubbornly moved forward as though once again, certain of the path ahead. The walkway in front of him was deserted. A parking lot should be only a short distance away.

All at once, the path under his feet sloped, curved, and headed in a different direction. A large tree suddenly appeared right in front of him, blocking his way. Where did it come from?

It was not there only moments before! He couldn’t see around it. So he couldn’t tell if the path continued on the other side of it or not.

The path once again changed and became even more alien. Still, he pressed on, hoping the former path was still there and his imagination was playing tricks on him. Confused and needing to consider his options, he stopped walking and just stood still. The scene once again changed, all but that tree.

The layout of the whole park was now different. How could someone, or something, redesign the whole area right in front of him? His thoughts raced as his mind sought answers.

As he stood there, the leaves of the tree began to rustle as if blown by the wind. The whole tree began to sway and make creaking sounds. The sounds were like those made by a tree being chopped down and beginning to fall. Yet he could see no one wielding an axe. The tree leaned toward him. Was it going to fall and crush him? Lord, save me! he cried shutting his eyes. Time seemed to stand still. He suddenly became aware of another sound, somewhere in the distance. The noise grew insistently louder! He struggled with his eyelids.

Groping through semi-consciousness, he reached out and his hand struck something—the source of the noise. It was his alarm clock. He pressed the off button and began to collect his thoughts. That crazy dream, again! he said to himself. It was a recurring dream that started when he was about thirteen. The dream did not come every night, but it came often enough to be annoying. Lord, what does it mean, and why does it keep coming to me? he asked as he flung his long legs over the side of the bed and sat up. The question was one he asked over and over, but no interpretation seemed to be forthcoming.

At least not one he understood. So he resolved to let the dream be just a dream. He then bowed to say his morning prayer. The young man, Walt Norman, yawned, stretched, and began combating the remaining cobwebs of sleepiness by rubbing his eyes and forcing himself into a standing position. He grabbed his shirt and khaki pants from the chair beside his bed. Putting them on, he headed down the stairs to the kitchen.

His mother was making breakfast. He could smell bacon frying. Mom must be up to something. Bacon and eggs are my favorites for a morning meal, he said to himself.

It’s about time, Sleepyhead. The sound of his mother’s voice came from the kitchen. Your alarm clock has been ringing for the past three minutes.

In the kitchen, Walt reached for a chair and sat down at the table. Oh, no you don’t! Go back upstairs and wash, brush your teeth, and change that shirt. Two days in the same shirt is long enough. I was asked to work a double today. Someone called off. I’ll be at work until late. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to look after the kids, his mother said. There it is—the reason for my favorite breakfast, he mumbled.

Walt stared at his mother who seemed to be aging right in front of him. Her visage was beginning to look a little gaunt and he was concerned about her. She was still a young woman, but she had no social life. All she did was work. I know we are Christians and according to the Bible, we are a peculiar people, but even Jesus had a social life. He attended the wedding of a relative in the city of Cana. I know Mom loves us, but she’s overly protective of us, and it’s causing her to neglect her needs in favor of ours, he thought.

Mom, I had plans for the day. Besides you work too hard! Walt said.

I know, son, but we need the money, his mother sighed.

Kate Norman, Walt’s mother, was an attractive woman in her late thirties. She worked mornings at a local hospital in the housekeeping department and some evenings for an independent, senior care service. Her two jobs both low-paying were necessary because she was raising three kids, and there was no foreseeable chance of collecting child support.

Her husband was not around. Of course, she was not the only woman who had ever been abandoned to raise children alone. The family lived in a low-income, housing project.

Walt was Kate’s oldest son from a previous marriage. Her first husband was deceased and she had been a widow for two years, prior to marrying again. Walt was now eighteen and could soon be out on his own. But after graduating from high school a few weeks earlier, he had chosen to stay at home and help his mother.

Since Kate was the family breadwinner, and Walt was still living with her, he was expected to babysit. This meant that he would not be able to work a full-time job or really look for one. Being a young man, Walt often found his situation frustrating, and his growing responsibilities overwhelming. Yet according to his way of thinking, everything happened for a reason. Each moment of life and each situation encountered had a meaning and a purpose for him. They merely had to be viewed correctly.

While heading back upstairs, Walt reluctantly recalled the dream and began to rationalize his thinking concerning it. Maybe the dream is a reflection of my present situation. If everything has a reason and a purpose, that tree might represent an obstacle of some sort. I don’t understand, but I know that ‘all things work together for good.’ This was the biblical verse that came to his mind. Not being able to figure out the dreams meaning, he once again dismissed it.

Walt Norman was a handsome young man who was over six feet tall, of average build, with a ready smile, and an amiable, but thoughtful personality. He thought of himself as congenial, and easy to get along with. Even though his current situation was not the best, he was reasonably happy.

Although he could be a little naive, at times, he was very intelligent. He loved his family but felt a little trapped by his current obligation to them. Not that he resented them, but he just had a plan for his life that was presently being put on hold by his circumstances. He also wanted to move his family out of the gang-inhabited neighborhood. However, that would take money—more money than his mother made.

After changing his clothes, Walt returned to the kitchen and sat down at the table. His attention was immediately drawn to two pairs of eyes staring at him from a doorway. The door leads to a hall and a small bedroom. One pair of eyes belonged to the doll-like face of Leila, his stepsister. She was almost six years old. Her hair was in disarray and she clutched a little, stuffed, toy rabbit. The second pair of eyes belonged to an equally cute and inquisitive, sibling, Martin. He was two years old and had very little hair. He was clutching his little blanket and sucking his thumb. The alarm clock must have awakened them. Walt motioned for them to enter the room. Each of them ran to a chair. Leila sat in the chair nearest Walt’s. Martin required some assistance in his chair.

The two children viewed Walt as a father figure and looked to him for guidance. They had no concept of him as an older brother. Their mother was the first authority figure and Walt was the second. Living in a highly troubled area, his siblings were vulnerable to unfavorable influences. Kate acknowledged the two little ones with kisses and served the breakfast. After breakfast, she left for work.

Walt had grown into a responsible young man with hopes and dreams of his own. It had been necessary for him to reach a level of maturity even as a teen. Years earlier, when Walt was twelve, his biological father had been killed during a drive-by shooting. There were violent rival gangs in the area. The police had suspected the shooting to be gang-related, and Walt’s father a target rather than an unfortunate bystander, but proving that theory was almost impossible.

The tragedy occurred at the start of Walt’s time in middle school. After school, Walt along with his best friend, Trent Michaels, would visit the library. Walt borrowed books about architects and designs, and Trent borrowed books about the law. Walt wanted to be an architect, and Trent wanted to be a lawyer. Walt’s father would meet the boys on his way home from work and walk home with them. The two boys had also enjoyed other after-school activities before gangs moved into the neighborhood.

One afternoon, as the boys left the library and Mr. Norman joined them, two cars drove into the area. Shots rang out, and Mr. Norman lay dead on the sidewalk. The two cars sped away without a backward look. The incident was horrific. and Walt still vividly remembered it. It had changed his life.

Prior to the shooting, gang members had started harassing the boys. They were trying to recruit them as members. Walt’s father had angered a gang leader by resisting the attempts to incorporate the neighborhood kids into that lifestyle. Mr. Norman had continually spoken out against the leaders accusing them of selling drugs and illegal firearms. He had organized a group of neighbors and tried to force the gangs to leave the area. He had the phone number for the police, on speed dial.

Disregarding Kate’s alarm and warnings, he had confronted gang members face-to-face demanding them to leave the kids alone. Unfortunately, his bravery led to his tragic death. During the weeks following the funeral, Walt and Trent were stopped on the street by gang members who intimidated them and asked a lot of questions. The inquiries seemed to be more focused on Trent than on Walt.

One month after the funeral, a limo with tinted windows pulled to a stop in front of the boys as they waited to cross a street on their way home from school. Trent was urged by some guys that exited the vehicle to enter it. Walt had stood on the sidewalk, too scared to move, expecting to hear a gunshot at any moment. The gang members had stood watching him. Standing there, he had prayed that nothing bad would happen to his friend.

A short time later, Trent had emerged from the car, and the two boys again headed for home. Trent, who was in the car? Walt asked. Big Oscar! He offered to send me to college. He asked a lot of questions about you, too, Trent replied.

Why? We both know him. Why didn’t he ask me? Walt said.

Don’t know, Trent had said and refused to talk about the incident again.

Two years after the shooting, Kate met and married a man named John Tremont, the father of her two younger children. The very handsome man pretended to console her after the death of her husband. He said he loved her and was, at first, good to her. So she trusted him and agreed to marry him.

John was an on-and-off type of husband who was frequently absent from the home. He often left the home and his family for days at a time. John had been good to his own children but had