Got a Great Surprise .....

Let me try to describe. 

It’s not enough simply to announce that finally -- after years and years -- I have experienced the fulfillment of a long-held dream. Not enough to talk of a milestone reached. I’m not even sure I am capable of telling the magnitude of the surprise I got on returning  home this afternoon. 

The package was undistinguished. It didn’t cry out to me. But my dear wife, as usual more perceptive, was excited by it. I had so cavalierly ripped open the package because I had not bothered to read the return address. 

The package was from Zondervan Publishing. 

It was the first advance copy of my new book! The official publication date is not till March 5^th and, though I had seen proofs and galleys and the incomplete paperback version the publisher had sent out to reviewers, this was the real thing! 

The title, “Finding Moosewood, Finding God” is embossed on the dust jacket, as is my name. The copy on the front flap includes that line I did not write but wish I had because it succinctly captures the nut of the story: “He gave up his life’s work ... And found his life’s purpose.” 

It’s gratifying to read portions of the various endorsements on the back cover and those endorsements in their entirety on the opening pages inside. It’s good to see all the photo pages inside showing glimpses of the TV years -- Vietnam and all, and others of our island lives including the shot of our Thanksgiving dinner laid out atop a foot of snow  blanketing our outdoor picnic table. 

What fun! And what a blessed opportunity coming soon to share my faith by sharing this book. Having finally seen the finished product, I am inordinately proud. 

Finding Moosewood, Finding God has received its first review

.... and I must say, this Author has no complaints about it at all!!!

It was done by the classic reviewing periodical, BookList.  And here is what they have written:

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Finding Moosewood, Finding God: What Happened When a TV Newsman Abandoned His Career for Life on an Island.
Perkins, Jack (Author)
Mar 2013. 320 p. Zondervan, hardcover, $22.99. (9780310318255). 070.92.

Inspired by a weeklong trip to Stephen King’s summer home, venerable television journalist Jack Perkins turned his back on city life and all its trappings to live in the wilds of Maine with his wife, Mary Jo. Several years and books later, Perkins turns his talent for telling grand tales to the task of recounting his voyage from small-town irreligious broadcaster to famous, globe-trotting journalist, back to small-town spiritual seeker. With equal parts humor and humility, Perkins sketches out his own road map to God and a more fulfilling life, leading the reader along with meandering grace through the major stops in his journey before hitting upon simple yet profound points. Journal entries, poems, and the use of datelines sprinkled throughout the book add to the feeling of being privy to a journal where the author has written his most personal ruminations on pursuing a simpler life and a deeper understanding of his Christian faith. Lively, contemplative, and heartfelt, Perkins makes a compelling argument for straying from the beaten path, and in doing so does Thoreau proud.


— Taina Lagodzinski 

Here are the first few pages of Finding Moosewood, Finding God

A sample designed ... of course .. to entice you to want to preorder the book. Any of the online booksellers or, certainly, your favorite local bookstore will be happy to do that for you. And I'll be REAL happy. 

Here starts Chapter One:


                                                  --0--

1: Why Thoreau It All Away?

Commentator Jack Perkins Leaving NBC for an Island

—Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, front page

After 25 years as a TV correspondent, anchorman and commentator, Jack Perkins said Friday he plans to retire from broadcast journalism next month to move to a small island off the coast of Maine.

—Los Angeles Times, page 12

Jack Perkins Leaves for Maine after Leaving his Mark

Jack started doing TV when TV started doing news.  He is one of the founding fathers of TV journalism.  He helped give it direction and purpose.  TV news is important in our society because people like Jack covered news as if it were important and as if we viewers were able to understand and learn from it.

—- Burbank Leader

Newsman Perkins Ankling in June

—Variety

The day those stories appeared, five questions tickled.  1) Why did the Her-Ex think the story deserved front page?  2) Why didn't the L.A. Times think it deserved front page?  3) Why was the Leader so embarrassingly effusive? 4) Why did Variety talk that way? and 5) Just plain why?   

Why, in the midst of a successful and satisfying television career, was I chucking it -- trading west coast for east; megalopolis of 8-million for island, population 2; airline schedules for tide table; TV Guides for Peterson's; Sak's for L.L. Bean; fourteen local TV stations and 82 local radio stations for none of either; three newspapers delivered to the front gate each morning and three more waiting at work, for a trip across the bay to Sherman's to buy the local weekly; smog for fog; mockingbirds for loons; new BMW for used Jeep; convenient public utilities for wood stove and solar power; monthly bills and paychecks for monthly bills; sounds of sounds for sounds of quiet; and freeways for free ways? Why?

For a quarter century, I had been a swimmer in the Magic Aquarium, an electronic image that flickered and fled. Correspondent/commentator/anchorman for NBC News is how I described myself. .  

“Noted actor/reporter,” mocked a non-TV colleague, in envy, I assumed.  

“That blankety-blank Jack Perkins,” muttered a certain president of the United States, not in envy, I assumed.  

Chaser of big doings, teller of grand tales, dweller among great cities, I not only loved my job but loved myself for having it. So what happened? Didn’t I still enjoy the recognition? When approached on the street by a stranger to whom — I could tell from the knowing glint in his eyes — I was not a stranger but a familiar Somebody from Somewhere to whom he had to say something, that wasn’t unpleasant, was it? 

Even better was being recognized by someone who really was a Somebody. Like approaching Bob Newhart at a party to tell him how much I admired his work, only to find him approaching me to tell me how much he admired mine; or when someone on the phone told me his friends had been praising a commentary I’d delivered on the air that day, and those friends were Elizabeth Taylor, Gregory Peck, and Cary Grant, and the Someone on the phone was Frank Sinatra — Why would I choose to “ankle” away from moments like those and become a certifiable Nobody? 

Beyond its superficial satisfaction, TV reporting offered joys of substance -- the pleasure of a story well told, a persuasive commentary.  A reporter had the rare and enviable power to shine light into the dark corners where land developers readied blueprints for urban blight, where con men schemed “Christian book sales” to separate the gullible from their nest-eggs, where malingerers feigned disabilities to bilk taxpayers; the shadowy back rooms where frauds, quacks,, and never-rich-enough billionaires plotted and conspired.  That flickering blue light in a distant window really could dispel darkness.  In an ephemeral medium, you could actually do lasting good.  

Why abandon that? Why would an ego fed on fame decide to diet?  Why, the introvert dependent on recognition to grease social ways withdraw to anonymity?  Having persuaded himself that the spotlight shining on him really did make him brighter — why, while that light still shone, would the actor, mid-play, exit grinning and head for a deserted island?

Or as pastor Dr. Robert Schuller, a man who loved word play, asked us in California one day, “Jack, Mary Jo, with all you have here, why do you want to Thoreau it away?”

Clever line -- which at that moment I couldn't answer. I didn't know. 

Thinking about it today, I realize that while I certainly enjoyed the touch of celebrity back then, something inside me -- yet unacknowledged -- was nagging: You're known, Big Guy. Hooray. But is that enough? Is it enough to have recognition if you don't use it? And how should you use it? Well, think of it this way, TV Man: Where did everything come from; who allowed you to enjoy such recognition? Might it have been the grace of a Holy God, giving you gifts not just to have but also to use? You've sung the hymn, To God Be the Glory. Might that be a purpose for what you have? 

Again, these were thoughts I should have been thinking years back but at least at a conscious level was not. In those golden-ego days, dazzled by the spotlight of celebrity, vanity and self-satisfaction, I was lost in the dark of my own illumination. Never did it occur to me that the flukes, impulses and happenstances that seemed to be directing my life were, in fact, the guidance of a generous hand – indeed, the guidance of the Holy Spirit.  I didn’t know and wouldn’t know for a while, the ultimate acknowledgement coming only slowly -- a reluctant revelation. 

More Excerpts To Come.... Keep Checking In ....

Sunday School with a Master

I spoke earlier of Fred Craddock -- the Rev. Dr. Fred B. Craddock, scholar, educator, pastor and inspiration most familiarly called by most of his flock simply, Fred.

Though he suffers from Parkinson's, is 84, not too long ago went through a siege of Guillain-Barre syndrome and no longer preaches regularly at the church he founded in Cherry Log, Georgia, he is, at the moment conducting Sunday school classes there for a few weeks and we attended yesterday. 

Rapt, intensely engaged were the folks who filled the fellowship hall of the little church listening to the master who would quite hate my calling him that.  As a speaker he is soft of voice and easy of manner and the points he made were gentle but challenging and many hands were diligently making notes. He spoke for an hour, beginning with a prayer thanking the Lord for his kind gift of "butterfly mornings and whipoorwill evenings." 

His challenge on that 14th of January was to the people to set as their task to read the entire New Testament between now and Easter, March 31st. He urged them to read it right through, not studying the text, not using outside references or dictionaries or commentaries; rather, he said, "Just let it happen. You won't memorize much along the way (or you won't know you have memorized it; you will end up with "forgotten memories." Just let it happen. 

I'm going to. I've enlisted. 

As I continue to work to promote my own forthcoming book, I am committed to reading through that entire part of THE BOOK.

Wanna join me in this Bible Non-Study?

Cal Thomas

Cal Thomas -- in many ways, the Man Who Made It Happen

I've known Cal for years and years and -- oh, yes! -- years. He referred to the tenure of our friendship in the Introduction he was kind enough to write for Finding Moosewood, Finding God.

But what I need to tell you is that there might not have been a Finding Moosewood, Finding God but for him. 

While I was busily contacting agents for this new book I wanted to get published, Cal, having read it in its very early stages, said he'd like to talk to a friend at Zondervan publishing house, the great Christian publisher in Grand Rapids, MI.. He did. And by the time I had chosen the wonderful agent I would be delighted to work with, Helen Zimmerman, (more about her later) Cal had already interested some folks at Zondervan into taking a look at my manuscript. 

Verne Kenney was the first at Zondervan to read sample chapters and quickly told me he'd like to read more. I sent him the whole manuscript. He got back to me several days later to say that "You've got a good book here, Jack." To which I replied, "No, Verne, I have a manuscript. I'm hoping you'll make it a book."

He had some insightful recommendations which greatly strengthened the work. And, having been an executive overseeing many of the groups and committees who now would have to read the ms. and give their thumbs up or down, he was well-positioned to be the work's shepherd through the process. I was most fortunate to have him behind it, behind me. 

And, as I said before, it was Cal who got the process all started with Zondervan. I couldn't thank him enough. Instead, I had yet one more favor to ask him. And that was, would he please write a foreword or introduction for the book. 

Now, Cal is busy. Beyond his widely syndicated columns and his regular pieces in USA Today, he also serves as a regular contributor to Fox News, and broadcasts for a D..C. radio station and Salem Communications stations. And travels regularly with his wife to their getaway home in Ireland. He's busy. Nevertheless, he readily agreed to my request though he said it might take a while to fit it in with everything else. 

That was late one afternoon. Next morning, in my email, I had it. He had done it at night and dispatched it first thing next day. I was shocked at his promptitude, but more by the generosity of his words. 

I won't spoil it all, rather save it for your enjoyment in the book, but here are some excerpts from Cal Thomas's Introduction to Finding Moosewood, Finding God. 

                                                           ------------------

         When we first met at NBC Washington back in the 60s, Jack’s official job description was a “writer” for the nationally known broadcast journalist, David Brinkley. Being a writer for Brinkley was something like being a hitting coach for Ted Williams. Brinkley wrote virtually all of his own stuff in a unique style. 

        I, through this, was a lowly copyboy at NBC News in Washington, but both of us saw ourselves as “in the door” at this great journalistic institution.
Like all of humanity, we were searching for the “meaning of life,” but didn’t know it at the time. In journalism, one can quickly become cynical because we see so many tragedies, political phonies and religious hypocrites, who fail to live up to promises they make, or practice what they preach. And so even if one decides to search for objective truth, one can often wind up lost by focusing on things below, rather than things above.
                                                          *     *      *
        In Finding Moosewood, Finding God, Jack Perkins takes us on his personal journey that led him to Jesus of Nazareth and to a new life with more purpose and power than anything Washington can offer or Hollywood can deliver. The problem with so many of us is that we never begin the journey and thus we never know that what is waiting for us is so much more – “exceedingly, abundantly, above all we ask or think,” as Scripture puts it – than the petty, unimportant and disposable things in which we place so much of our puny faith.
Jack’s faith in Christ is real because he has processed it – worked it out, as Paul the Apostle of Jesus commanded.  Finding Moosewood, Finding God is as unique as Jack. It avoids the clichés of contemporary evangelicalism and introduces us to what seems like an exciting life interviewing celebrities, only to present a much more purposeful life after Jack meets the Creator of all.

Friends, you can see, I believe, why I am so thrilled and grateful. Thank you, Brother Cal. 

I had lunch with Fred Craddock today

That simple sentence thrills me. 

It was a former pastor of ours in Florida, David Elton, who years ago while he and I were chaperoning some of the youth of our church to summer camp at Montreat, N.C., one day in the bookstore asked me if I’d ever heard of Fred Craddock and his books. I hadn’t and he steered me to a shelf with several of them displayed. At his urging, I chose one, Cherry Log Sermons and took it home. By the time I got home, however, I had already finished it (though I knew I would be going back time and again to read and reflect on its wisdom. 

They were simple sermons by a master, a country preacher who was so much more than that. By that time, Dr. Craddock had spent decades preaching and teaching (Candler Theological Seminary, Emory University, Atlanta) and then, partially retiring, had founded a small church up in the north Georgia town of Cherry Log (great name!). The book included texts of many of the sermons he had given in that small church. In all, they clearly proved that you don’t need to go to the great marble edifices in the big cities to get great preaching. One of the national news magazines (was it Time or Newsweek?) declared him to be one of the greatest preachers in the United States. 

When Jo and I built our log house up in north Georgia, we found ourselves just a town away from little Cherry Log but by that time Pastor Craddock had given up regular preaching, turning the pulpit over to another preacher. He still preached occasionally, we were told, but sporadically, almost unpredictably. So we started going to that church when we were in Georgia, hoping.....

There were many disappointments but, alas, one week we arrived and, checking the bulletin, found that, indeed, the sermon would be delivered by Fred Craddock. That was a December 28^th. I remember because it was my birthday and what a perfect gift I was given. We surely were not disappointed by the message he preached that morning and though it was years ago, we still remember it. 

There would come occasions, thereafter, to communicate with him, then meet him when I had the temerity to ask him if he would consider writing an endorsement for my new book, the book whose birth I am now awaiting. He agreed to read the galleys and then we had lunch, just he and I, and he probed and questioned me and said he would be happy to go home that weekend and write something for me. If it worked I was welcome to use it or cut it or whatever.

I did not cut it. Not a word. It was so much more than I could have expected and I was honored to receive his most articulate blessing. 

Today, Mary Jo and I both had the chance to take him and his wife Nettie to lunch that I might, yet again, thank him for the generosity of his language and spirit. He truly is a blithe spirit.  A small man about whom there is nothing small. 

These were his words of endorsement which you will find printed in the front matter of “Finding Moosewood, Finding God” when it is released March 5^th. 

Jack Perkins is a poet and that means enjoyment for the reader. Jack’s mastery of the English language provides pleasure a plenty. You will want to pass this book along to your friends.

But before you do, you may want to read it again yourself. Jack is on to something; you can sense it. He moves past the apparent to the Truth, to God. About this journey he is passionate, but as a poet he must keep his passion on a leash, out of respect for the reader who needs room to make his or her own journey. So, no pre-packaged conclusions here; no coercion here; no grand claims to have walked all the way around God and taken pictures. The poet knows that Truth comes suggestively, not dogmatically. The poet pauses over hints and coincidences, not with doubt’s hesitation but with reverence for the God who came veiled in flesh.

Fred B. Craddock

Bandy Distinguished Professor of

Preaching and New Testament,

Emeritus

Candler School of Theology,

Emory University

 Here is the cover art for my new book, my "Spiritual Memoir"

The story behind the cover...

The wonderful artists of Zondervan publishing came up with four possible cover images and gave me the choice. This one is not, as some have thought, a photograph of our island, Moosewood, and I did not take the photo but it feels right. To my wife and me who lived there for 15 years, this image simply feels right!  The whole cover does. It is mellow and peaceful yet active and such were our lives there. 

Ah, but there was one problem. In its original version, the pine cone up in right, Mary Jo noted, was quite wrong. Misplaced. It was the cone of a Ponderosa pine, nowhere to be found along the coast of Maine. On the other hand, the state flower of the state of Maine is the Eastern White Pine cone and tassel so, at Jo's urging, the Zondervan folk were happy to give the cover just the right pine. 

Little thing but I care so much about this project, I wanted everything just right. 

Please notice, also, the line "Foreword by Cal Thomas." In my next posting I'll talk about that and offer a sample of his gracious and insightful words. 

I am committed to do all I can to promote this new book ....

...Because I truly believe it is 1) the best and most important work I have ever done and, 2) I believe the story of one man's transformation might inspire another man, another woman and, 3) because I owe it to the God who has guided my life in so many ways over these many years -- even before I recognized it -- wants me to proclaim His story.

I hope you'll check in here frequently over coming months and follow the story of Finding Moosewood, Finding God as it develops. The book is due out March 5th. The fun is just beginning.