Russ Martin

Trice Russ Martin

Trice is dedicated to all Veterans who have served their country honorably, especially those who gave their time and energy, life or limb in combat, and are service-connected with disabilities that shadow them through their lives. These heroes never came home from war; they came home with war. The book is an expression of gratitude to the contributors, educators, coaches, gurus, mentors, partners, friends and acquaintances, as well as generally wise souls who showed me the pathway to my inner-Self. The underlying motivations experienced while learning these lessons and living the life transformations are surrender and truth, respectively. I believe surrender is the requirement for being in the presence of wisdom derived through life's passages; and truth is the essence of transforming one's self into Self. The stitching which holds these two fabrics of me together involves neural networks which guided or misguided my experiences. Four poignant timeframes within which neural networks were created on a prolific basis include: the nature of Jesuit education; the intensity of combat immersion in Southeast Asia; a concentrated exposure to American Indians, specifically the Lakota Nation; and living with Khmer in chronic-poverty within remote Cambodian villages. For forty years I struggled and turned away from all I held sacred earlier in my life after witnessing the hell of it all during combat in Southeast Asia. Life, for a good many years following the War, didn't make any sense. War still doesn't. The book honors three major types of contributors: Movers and Shapers - The Canyon Dwellers of My Life, folks who helped me cut my Grand Canyon; Sages of the Ages - The Storytellers of My Life, individuals been incredibly impactful, influencing consciously and unconsciously; and Troubadours in My Life - "Good, Good, Good... Good Vibrations," the impressionists where music matters and melody, harmony and lyrics coalesce in strange, intoxicating ways of persuasion.