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Where I'm Coming From:
I am a firm believer in continuing education. I constantly look for new
things to learn. In the seventies I was introduced to new spiritual
possibilities in the form of Edgar Cayce, Jane Roberts, Ram Dass and other new
age gurus. I read a lot and found one book that really spoke to me. It was "The Handbook
to Higher Consciousness" by Ken Keyes, Jr. Kens' group was offering
workshops and I signed up for "Opening Up" held in Philadelphia.
Boy did I open up for some new possibilities and it was sort of like the
universe said, "Here you go fellow," and gave me more than I thought I
could handle at one time. Actually I handled it quite well and came away
feeling really high on peace and love. (No chemicals required.) All
I knew was that I wanted more of this and became sort of a workshop junkie.
I try to take at least one each year. I strongly feel that every event of this type that
I've attended has helped me advance on my personal path to spiritual
enlightenment.
An area of study that I've been concentrating on for the last five or six years
is how to improve one's concept of self worth. I attended a weekend
workshop presented by Nathaniel Branden and the next year I went to a weekend
workshop with Jack Canfield. Both were held at Omega Conference Center
near Rhinebeck, NY. Jack really turned me on to the Self-Esteem enhancing
possibilities using techniques that he has developed over the years.
Jack's methods make use of humor and hugs. I love to tell jokes (hence the
internet nickname, JokerJohnnie) and really enjoy getting and giving hugs.
In July of 2000 I attended Jack's weeklong "Facilitating Skills"
workshop in Santa Barbara, CA. With the material and techniques I learn in
this session I intend to offer Self-Esteem classes at our local community
college this fall.
My wife and I just celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary. My wife runs a
private dining club with over 600 members in North Central Pennsylvania.
In addition to being an excellent cook and extremely hard worker she is also an
avid gardener. I am 62 years old, office manager for a construction
company, bookkeeper for the dining club, Rotarian, president of a local
philanthropic organization, treasurer of the local Chamber of Commerce and an
organic gardener. We have two grown sons. One is a principal in
"The Adventure Game Theatre" presenting impromptu theater workshops to
young and old alike in the North East. The younger one is a student at Penn
State University in the forestry department. Both sons were foreign exchange students.
Our family has hosted 5 exchange students in the past.
At this point of my life I would like to share some of the things I've learned
that have worked for me and offer some observations about how one's life can
work for the better. I also plan to recommend books and programs that have
proven useful to me with the hope that they may be beneficial to others.
Comments and criticisms are welcome.
Joker Johnnie a.k.a. John Kaiser
"It is never too late to give up your prejudices."
-Henry David Thoreau
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