Birds of Flight
by
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Garrick suddenly felt an inertia in his belly like it was rising up into his mind and blocking his thoughts. He started speaking in tongues. And began to foam at the mouth. But still nothing improved. But Garrick was determined to get his daughter to this basketball game. So he started pacing around his apartment. Pacing often helped him. And he started screaming at the top of his lungs, “Jesus I trust you!! Jesus, I trust you! I know you won’t let me down.“ After pacing for 20 minutes, he saw that it was 9:55 am. So he put on his clothes, got his cell phone, and went to pick up Aria. As he drove, he heard voices telling him that he was going to get into an accident. He heard voices telling him that he was going to kill Miles. And he still felt like something in his stomach was trying to overcome his mind. So he tensed up his stomach. Breathing deeply just caused him more affliction. So he just kept talking to God. “All right God, I’ve got to do this. Give me the strength to get this done.” Still Garrick felt no change. He pulled up to Tiuana’s house and he rang the doorbell. Miles answered the door. “Whatsup black man?!!” Garrick said. “Whatsup brother.” Miles said. Garrick almost compulsively never told anyone when he was having a hard time. It usually just made the symptoms worse. So whether it was at work or at social events, Garrick put on his happy face no matter what he was feeling. As soon as he shook Mile’s hand, Garrick heard a voice say, “Kill him!!” Garrick shuddered and said to Miles.” So how about Golden State? They are not dominating like they dominated last year.” Miles responded, “Yeah, maybe the championship went to their heads. But they’re still my team!!” Both men laughed. Garrick asked, “Is Aria here?” Miles responded, “Yeah, let me get her for you.” Aria came out and said, “Hey Dad!!” Garrick responded, “Hey beautiful!! Let’s go, so that you can light up the court!!” Aria smiled. “All right Miles, stay sexy!!” Garrick said to his ex-wife’s fiancé. Miles laughed, which gave Garrick some relief. As soon as Garrick and Aria got in the car, Garrick programmed the basketball game location into his GPS. As he programmed the address in, he heard, “Kill her, kill her now!!” Garrick felt tormenting fear flood his body. “So, Aria, you ready to score 10 points?” he asked his daughter. “Maybe Dad, maybe!!” Garrick followed his GPS. Hoping beyond hope, that somehow his afflictions would go away. He remembered his homework. “In the name of Jesus, I render all demons within me harmless. All demons within me can trouble me no more, In the name of Jesus it is so,” he said under his breath. His daughter Aria asked him, “Daddy, what are you saying?” “Oh Aria, I am just talking to God about how proud I am of you!! You are such an angel!!!” When they got to the basketball game, Garrick’s horror increased. And he felt like he had gone from the frying pan into the fire. He kept hearing commandments to kill whoever he came in contact with. He still felt as though something in his belly was trying to take over his mind. And he had spasms. He also kept seeing these LCD messages in his mind’s eye, giving him messages like, “You are sold under Satan. We will never stop tormenting you. You are going to die a violent death. You might as well just kill everyone in here because that is your nature.” Garrick sent Aria to her team for pregame practice and sat in the stands. He was truly in a state of torment at this point and just lay down on the bleachers hoping for some reprieve. He couldn’t even imagine focusing enough to watch the game. He just lay down and let all of the tormenting voices and feelings berate him. Then he heard a voice say, “Contact your prayer warriors.” Garrick grabbed his cell phone and started texting a group of people to whom he reached out when he was having symptoms. He wrote, “Hi, I am having anxiety symptoms, please pray!! Love always, Garrick.” He must have sent that text out to 30 people, barely able to concentrate enough to get the task done. In minutes, Garrick started getting texts back saying things like, ”Praying for you brother…. Praying for you brother; love you too…. It is done…. I’ve got your back…!!!” As the texts started to flood in, Garrick felt the oppression starting to lift. He knew that he was not alone. He felt relief overtake his body. The LCD messages stopped. He stopped hearing voices telling him to kill people. And he breathed a sigh of relief.
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About the Book
Birds of Flight is a book about seven people with severe and persistent mental illness who have reached a point of desperation. They seek out an unorthodox therapist and begin to engage in group therapy sessions with their therapist and with each other. In the midst of these sessions, a revival of love breaks out among these individuals, which results in life changing healing and a new hope for them all.
About the Author
Woodrow Lucas was born in Columbia, Maryland in 1974. He has an undergraduate degree in Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences from Northwestern University and a Master’s in Theological Studies and a Master’s in Business Administration from Vanderbilt University. In 2001, Woodrow was diagnosed with a severe and persisent mental illness, Schizoaffective Disorder. For close to twenty years Woodrow has been utilizing his spirituality and his perspicacious intellect to mount a miraculous recovery from schizoaffective disorder that has enabled him to serve in several professional capacities, be an active member of his daughters Autumn and Gabrielle’s lives, and write and publish two other books entitled A Book of Rhythm and Insane Joy.