I’m sure at some
point when you’re driving down the road, you encounter a car with a turn signal
on. You’re driving and wondering if and when that car will change lanes or
actually turn. This could go on for yards or miles, one never knows! Perhaps
the car eventually changes lanes or turns off. Other times . . . And
embarrassingly, I have to admit that I’ve done this myself. The turn isn’t
great enough to automatically turn off the blinker, so I’m driving along
oblivious that my car is sending other drivers an unintentional signal.
At times, the
opposite occurs.
You might be driving
along when all of a sudden a car jumps into your lane without a signal, without
a notice, and at the last moment. You have to slow down. Sometimes you slam on
the brakes and lay on the horn. Maybe you’ve given them some other sort of silent
. . . or not . . . communication. A hand gesture, perhaps (not that I’ve ever
done that, mind you- at least not today, so far).
Our youngest,
Emily, has been known to be oblivious to signals guys give her. While in high
school, a guy texted her and asked if she wanted to go get ice cream at Carl’s.
Now, this guy lives waaaay out and it would be quite the drive for him. Emily
decided that she didn’t want ice cream. (Kim and I just shook our head). Days
later, this same young man does the same thing. Again, Emily decides that she
is in the middle of homework or a book or a movie or she’s tired or . . . Kim
and I shook our head and one of us suggests that perhaps, the boy wasn’t so
much interested in ice cream as he was in seeing her. She looks at us blankly
and asks, “Really?” (Kim and I just shook our head).
Her current
boyfriend tells the story of how they first met, or rather, sort of met. It
took time.
He is a football
player, Emily is a soccer player. They were on the turf field messing around,
not at practice. Just messing around enjoying the sun and nice weather. He kept
looking over at her. Emily mentioned to one of her teammates that “This guy
keeps staring at me.” Her friend smiled and shook her head. Later that same day
eating lunch in the cafeteria, Emily is sitting at a table with her friends
when this same young man enters with a group of his friends, sees her and
waves. Emily sees him and quickly puts her head down. Even she can’t explain
why she did that. (As I write this, I shake my head).
Each of us send
and receive signals to and from individuals around us all day long. Sometimes
the signals are obvious, sometimes not so much. A smile. A frown. Head down and
hands in pockets. ‘Sad eyes.’ A blush. Someone lingering nearby, sometimes someone’s
absence.
Kids send unclear
and mixed signals to adults. Perhaps it is because we’re adults and they are
kids. Sometimes it is because of our title as teacher, as coach, as principal. And
at times, we can send unclear and mixed signals to each other.
Sometimes what is
said isn’t as important as the way it was said. Sometimes the message is hidden
or couched in between the words used, and sometimes it is not so much the words
used, but the absence of the words that could have been used that is the real
message.
Think about that .
. .
Hannah teaches
fifth grade. Earlier this year, a boy asked her if she was married. She smiled
and said, “No, but I have a boyfriend.” He blushed, nodded, and walked away
head down.
There was a
message that wasn’t expressed through his words.
Last year,
Savannah, would see me in the hallway. She would stop and ask if I was okay.
Lilly does that every now and then this year. I’m wondering what signal I’m
giving off that caused Savannah to ask, and what signal I’m giving off that
causes Lilly to ask. And, I wonder what signal those two young ladies are
giving me by asking me if I’m okay. What is their signal, their message?
Kids approach us
each day, all day long. We approach our colleagues each day, all day long.
Sometimes the signals are upfront and obvious. Other times, not so much.
Sometimes there is meaning behind the words, the gestures, the expressions. Sometimes,
there is meaning in the absence of words, gestures and expressions. Signals all
and nonetheless. Something to think about . . .
Live Your Life,
and Make A Difference!
To My Readers:
Connect with me on Social Media:
Twitter at
@jrlewisauthor
Facebook at:
https://www.facebook.com/Joseph.Lewis.Author
Good News!
Spiral Into Darkness has been nominated
for Top Shelf Book Awards! That is quite an honor! I’ll find out more in
late November or early December.
Diane Donovan, Senior Reviewer for Midwest Review had some wonderful things to say about Spiral Into Darkness:
“Joseph Lewis
excels in building more than just a 'whodunnit' mystery. His is a novel of
psychological suspense that weaves a 'cat-and-mouse' game into the equation of
dealing with a killer who is much cleverer than anyone he's run up against in
his career as a detective. Tension builds in an excellent, methodical manner as
Lewis creates a scenario that rests firmly on not just the actions of all
involved, but their psychological foundations. The result is a powerfully
written work of psychological fiction that is highly recommended not just for
mystery and police procedural readers, but for those who appreciate literary
works well grounded in strong characters, plot development, and emotional
tension. Great buildup, great insights, great reading!”
Readers Favorites
wrote:
“If you enjoy
thrillers, especially psychological ones, Spiral
Into Darkness by Joseph Lewis will grab you good and proper in the opening
two chapters. You will find yourself avidly turning pages as a serial killer
accosts his victims, confirms their identities and blasts away their faces with
a .38 pistol. If you are interested in both the good and bad sides of humanity
and why we each turn out as we do, Spiral
Into Darkness won’t disappoint.”
Best Thrillers
wrote:
“The Bottom Line:
A thoroughly compulsive police procedural by
one of America’s most promising new writers. Joseph Lewis, author of our Best of 2018 pick Caught in a Web, is
back with another crime thriller featuring world-weary Milwaukee detective
Jamie Graff . . . While Lewis savagely explores romance, drama, and sexuality
with his wider cast of characters, Jamie’s interpersonal life is refreshingly
free of drama for a cop, enabling him to be the determined, resourceful rock
capable of cracking the case. The result is a thoroughly compulsive crime
thriller.”
And, Spiral Into Darkness has made it into the Top 50 Indie Books by Reader’s Choice!
You can find Spiral Into Darkness on Amazon at https://amzn.to/2RBWvTm and on Barnes and Noble at https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spiral-into-darkness-joseph-lewis/1129937958;jsessionid=0C9F7881E2F56139FAD36435022CB35D.prodny_store01-atgap18?ean=9781684332090
Best Thrillers had
previously reviewed my book, Caught in a
Web. It was named as a PenCraft
Literary Award Winner for Thriller Fiction! Best Thrillers called it “one of the best crime thriller books of
the year!” I am both proud and humbled.
You can find Caught in a Web on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKF7696
or on Barnes and Noble https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/caught-in-a-web-joseph-lewis/1128250923?ean=9781684330249
Caught in a Web is now available in Audio format. You can
find it at https://www.beaconaudiobooks.com/audiobookreleases/high-school-drug-rings-gangs-and-revenge-are-all-encompassing-in-caught-in-a-web-by-joseph-lewis
If you do read Caught in a Web, Spiral Into Darkness, or any of my other books, please leave a
rating and a review. I would appreciate it. Thanks for this consideration!
Spiral Into Darkness:
He blends in. He
is successful, intelligent and methodical. He has a list and has murdered eight
on it so far. There is no discernible pattern. There are no clues. There are no
leads. The only thing the FBI and local police have to go on is the method of
death: two bullets to the face- gruesome and meant to send a message. But it’s
difficult to understand any message coming from a dark and damaged mind. Two
adopted boys, struggling in their own world, have no idea they are the next
targets. Neither does their family. And neither does local law enforcement. https://amzn.to/2RBWvTm
Caught in a Web:
The bodies of high
school and middle school kids are found dead from an overdose of heroin and
fentanyl. The drug trade along the I-94 and I-43 corridors and the Milwaukee
Metro area is controlled by MS-13, a violent gang originating from El Salvador.
Ricardo Fuentes is sent from Chicago to Waukesha to find out who is cutting in
on their business, shut it down and teach them a lesson. But he has an ulterior
motive: find and kill a fifteen-year-old boy, George Tokay, who had killed his
cousin the previous summer.
Detectives Jamie
Graff, Pat O’Connor and Paul Eiselmann race to find the source of the drugs,
shut down the ring, and find Fuentes before he kills anyone else, especially
George or members of his family. The three detectives discover the ring has its
roots in a high school among the students and staff. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CKF7696
Book One of the Lives Trilogy, Stolen Lives:
Two thirteen year
old boys are abducted off a safe suburban street. Kelliher and his team of FBI
agents have 24 hours to find them or they’ll end up like all the others- dead!
They have no leads, no clues, and nothing to go on. And the possibility exists
that one of his team members might be involved. http://tinyurl.com/Stolen-Lives-J-Lewis
Book Two of the Lives Trilogy, Shattered Lives:
Six men escaped
and are out for revenge. The boys, recently freed from captivity, are in danger
and so are their families, but they don’t know it. The FBI has no clues, no
leads, and nothing to go on and because of that, cannot protect them. http://tinyurl.com/Shattered-Lives-J-Lewis
Book Three of the Lives Trilogy, Splintered Lives:
A 14 year old boy
knows the end is coming. What he doesn’t know is when, where or by whom.
Without that knowledge, neither he nor the FBI can protect him or his family.
The Lives Trilogy Prequel, Taking Lives:
FBI Agent Pete
Kelliher and his partner search for the clues behind the bodies of six boys
left in various and remote parts of the country. Even though they don’t know
one another, the lives of FBI Kelliher, 11 year old Brett McGovern, and 11 year
old George Tokay are separate pieces of a puzzle. The two boys become
interwoven with the same thread that Pete Kelliher holds in his hand. The three
of them are on a collision course and when that happens, their lives are in
jeopardy as each search for a way out. http://tinyurl.com/Taking-Lives-J-Lewis
