The Lamp: A Novel by Jim Stovall With Tracy J Trost Read online

  © Copyright 2011—Jim Stovall

  All rights reserved. This book is protected by the copyright laws of the United States of America. This book may not be copied or reprinted for commercial gain or profit. The use of short quotations or occasional page copying for personal or group study is permitted and encouraged. Permission will be granted upon request.

  DESTINY IMAGE® PUBLISHERS, INC.

  P.O. Box 310, Shippensburg, PA 17257-0310

  For a U.S. bookstore nearest you, call 1-800-722-6774.

  For more information on foreign distributors, call 717-532-3040.

  Reach us on the Internet: www.destinyimage.com

  ISBN 13 TP: 978-0-7684-3785-0

  ISBN 13 Ebook: 978-0-7684-8994-1

  For Worldwide Distribution, Printed in the U.S.A.

  1 2 3 4 5 6 / 14 13 12 11

  DEDICATION

  This book is dedicated to my colleagues at Trost Moving Pictures, Destiny Image Publishers, and my team at the Narrative Television Network who saw this story not only as a book but as a major motion picture.

  It is also dedicated to my friends and family who taught me in word and deed that dreams do come true, regardless of your circumstances—if you just believe.

  And, finally, this book is dedicated to Dorothy Thompson who, once again, has taken my dictated words and turned them into the book you hold in your hands.

  Our destiny is waiting from our choices.

  I am as healthy as I believe myself to be.

  I am as wealthy as I believe.

  I am only as blessed as I consider myself blessed.

  I am as happy as I will allow myself to become blessed.

  My life is as productive as I, myself, will permit.

  Anyone old enough,

  Having failed often enough,

  Wept hard enough,

  And laughed regularly enough,

  Can find a flame of hope enough

  For each of us.

  FROM THE PERSONAL DIARY OF JOYE KANELAKOS

  CONTENTS

  Foreword

  Introduction

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  About the Author

  FOREWORD

  I think when we are young we have a tendency to dream big and shoot for the stars. But, at some point along the way, many people lose their extraordinary dreams and become content with ordinary lives—settling into familiar routines and letting life pass by.

  On an early July morning in 1969, I was driving along a nearly deserted highway on my way to an insurance sales meeting. It was Friday and I looked forward to finishing my business and then enjoying a weekend with my wife, Shirley. I enjoyed my work, but the weekends were what I really looked forward to. And I could have lived my life for years doing the same thing I was doing that day, over and over again.

  But on that early July morning, my life changed forever. I was involved in a devastating automobile accident. Fortunately everyone survived, and even though the accident was not my fault, I faced potentially financially devastating legal issues. This resulting trouble led me, in 1972, to start the company that is now known as Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

  In the years following the 1969 accident, my wife and I had several choices to make along the way. We could have allowed the circumstances of life to force me into work that was meaningless and meant only to pay the bills. And believe me, I understand the temptation to settle in and trade time for money. At times it can seem to be the easy way out; so I understand that temptation, but I knew it wasn’t for me. That’s what this book is about. It’s about taking a life, maybe your life, and finding happiness. It’s about how to decide that life should be better—that it will be better.

  Do you know someone who has just settled into life? Do you know someone who is miserable spending their entire week looking forward to the weekend? Do you know someone for whom the weekend, instead of a fulfilling life, holds the promise of happiness?

  If that sounds like you or someone you know, I’m glad you’re reading this book. I hope the wisdom shared in the contemporary story you now hold in your hands will enlighten and inspire you. In fact, if you will let it, I believe the principles and practices outlined in this book could quite literally change your life.

  I believe in the power of changing lives so much that I’ve built my company around this very concept. For decades Pre-Paid Legal has been in the business of providing a revolutionary service through a method that has helped many people, just like you, achieve their dreams. I have heard stories of retail workers leaving their 80-hour workweek drudgery to enjoy lives of fulfillment—to finally be able to pay their bills. I have seen lawyers, doctors, janitors, and teachers change their lives with the opportunity Pre-Paid Legal offers. In fact, at press time, Pre-Paid Legal has welcomed 135 people into the Millionaire Club, meaning that those people have each earned $1 million or more in their careers with Pre-Paid Legal.

  But it’s not just about the money. Pre-Paid Legal is about making a living while making a difference. While I have witnessed many successes with the business opportunity available through Pre-Paid Legal, I have enjoyed reading countless letters from people who use the service we provide. If you want to see the difference we’re making in the lives of people every day, all you have to do is read a few of those letters—we post many of them on our company Website.

  Jim Stovall is a dear friend of mine. I am so honored to be involved in your experience with his latest work, The Lamp. It is my deepest wish that you find happiness, that you make decisions that lead to joy and fulfillment, and that somehow you and those you love will be enriched and blessed by the message of this book.

  You’ll have to read the book to understand my closing remark, but this may very well be your “Charles” moment. The decision is yours to make.

  Best wishes for the life you want and deserve.

  HARLAND C. STONECIPHER, Founder

  Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

  INTRODUCTION

  The Lamp has become a very special story to me.

  In 1996, a good friend who is a Broadway producer and event promoter contacted me and asked if I would be interested in doing an arena speaking tour featuring Og Mandino and me. As an author myself, I was ecstatic at the prospect of working with one of the greatest writers of our time; and as a speaker, the thought of getting to do an arena tour with Og Mandino was very compelling.

  A few weeks before our first event was scheduled, the promoter called me and said, “We have a slight problem.” When I asked him to elaborate, he told me that Og Mandino had died the night before. I informed the promoter that if that is a slight problem, I didn’t want to be around if there was a major problem.

  I told the promoter to simply cancel the tour, but he challenged me with an amazing question. He asked what I would do if I had an arena
full of people and I wanted to impact their lives.

  Since the promoter worked predominantly with Broadway events and entertainment projects, I let my mind wander and told him that I would like to create a two-and-a-half hour event with an intermission, just like a Broadway show.

  We created music, laser images, and big screen interviews with children telling what they wanted to do when they grew up, as well as 100-year-old people explaining what was important in their lives. The show was entitled Discover Your Destiny.

  I was really excited about each element of the show, but something was missing. I decided to write a brief one-act play that my friend and colleague Kelly Morrison and I would perform together. That’s exactly what we did.

  The play was entitled The Lamp and was a very popular part of the Discover Your Destiny show. Years later, I was contacted by a publisher, and it became a book.

  Then my friend and movie partner Tracy J. Trost and I started thinking about The Lamp as a movie. As we turned the story into a feature film, I adapted what I had previously written into the book you hold in your hands.

  Ironically, the publisher of this book and the distributor of the film are my friends at Destiny who share its name with the long-ago show I created, Discover Your Destiny, which was the genesis of The Lamp.

  The idea of a magic lamp and three wishes is as old as the written or spoken word, but I hope in this modern adaptation you and your family will find new hopes, dreams, and ambitions in which you can just believe.

  After you read this book, be sure to check out the movie of The Lamp starring Academy Award-winner Louis Gossett Jr., Jason London, Meredith Salinger, Muse Watson, and an ensemble cast of gifted and committed actors.

  It is truly a joy for me to experience my written words come to life on a movie screen. Even though a number of my books have been turned into movies, it is always a humbling and gratifying dream-come-true for me.

  You may have seen movies based on other novels of mine such as The Ultimate Gift, The Ultimate Life, or A Christmas Snow. If so, you may remember that I had a brief cameo in each film as the limo driver. Somehow I enjoy the image of a blind guy driving a limo. If you’ve seen all my movies, or if The Lamp is your first, I think you will enjoy my feeble acting efforts as a chauffeur.

  You would not be the first person to wonder about the oddity of a blind person being in the movie business. It actually comes naturally to me as, for the past 20 years, my company—the Emmy Award-winning Narrative Television Network—has made movies and television accessible to the 13 million blind and visually impaired Americans and millions more around the world.

  If you would like to experience this yourself or share it with a visually impaired friend or loved one, just pick up the DVD of The Lamp movie and select the narration setting on the menu.

  A dear friend of mine once said, “If you can tell a great story, you earn the right to share your message.” I hope in these pages you experience a great story and a powerful message; but what’s more, I hope you and your family can take this message and bring it to life in your own world.

  Several years ago, Barbara Eden was starring in a Broadway show adapted from Neil Simon’s play The Odd Couple. I attended the show and went backstage afterward to meet Barbara. We sat and talked for a long time. Barbara Eden is known around the world for playing a magic genie in the television show I Dream of Jeannie. I quickly forgot about the fact that she was a beautiful movie and television star, and our conversation dealt mostly with wishes, hopes, and dreams.

  I think the magic that involves a genie and a lamp begins and ends with you and me thinking about what is possible instead of what is practical. It is easy to live our lives focusing on why things can’t happen, but every once in a while, it’s good to ask, “What if?” and just believe.

  JIM STOVALL

  2011

  CHAPTER 1

  Every day dawns filled with promise, potential, and possibility.

  Lisa Walters had not experienced those feelings at the beginning of a new day for several years. She was jolted awake from a deep sleep by the rude and abrupt intrusion of the alarm clock on her bedside table. She groaned, rolled over, and glanced at the offending clock. Lisa was incredulous to discover that it was already 7:00 A.M.. She would have sworn that she had just lain down; and as she slapped the alarm clock into silence, Lisa realized that she was more tired than she had been the night before when she went to bed.

  As had become her custom, she glanced at the other side of the bed which, once again, revealed that it had not been slept in, and Lisa knew she was still alone in every way.

  As Lisa rolled out of her warm bed, more from habit than anything else, she knew that the best part of her day was already over. Going to sleep each night seemed to be her only respite from the impossible life she was living. A dreamless sleep, or even a nightmare, seemed better than the reality that confronted her every day.

  Lisa began the mindless routine of going through her morning ritual which involved getting ready for another day. She showered and dressed without thinking or even being aware of her surroundings. She gave her image one last glance in the mirror and wondered how everything that had started out so right could have possibly gone so wrong.

  As she had no answer to this daily question, she stumbled out of the bedroom and down the hallway.

  Lisa paused and glanced into her son Eddy’s bedroom where she saw her husband, Stanley, once again sleeping in Eddy’s single bed. He had obviously slept fitfully and was tangled in Eddy’s rumpled comforter that was covered with a baseball player design.

  The walls were filled with posters of baseball players. On the dresser were Little League team photos and several baseball trophies. Lisa’s eye stopped on the photo of her son, Eddy, wearing his baseball uniform and smiling at the camera. Another photo showed Eddy and his teammates posed for a team picture with Stanley smiling proudly, standing behind the players. Stanley was wearing a baseball cap and his coach’s whistle.

  Lisa remembered those times as if they were yesterday, but when she tried to capture the feelings, they seemed like ancient history.

  Lisa’s gaze slid toward the familiar sight of a photo from Eddy’s last birthday party. Friends and family were gathered around a brightly lit birthday cake with the number 7 written in icing. The seven represented the number on Eddy’s baseball uniform and the fact that they were celebrating his seventh birthday.

  Just when she thought she couldn’t feel any more empty and desolate, Lisa’s memory drifted back to Eddy’s funeral just a few weeks after that final birthday party.

  It was a cold, rainy day that mirrored Lisa’s mood during the funeral and seemed to set the tone for what she feared would be the rest of her life. There was a somber group of friends and family gathered around the small casket at the graveside.

  Lisa pondered how few things in life evoke greater sorrow than the image of a casket. Ironically, she thought that the smaller the casket, the greater the sorrow.

  Lisa knew that the minister had said some words that were intended to be comforting, but she couldn’t hear them on that fateful day, and any intended comfort fell on deaf ears, then and now.

  As Lisa looked back at the baseball team photo with Stanley’s smiling image, she tried to recapture that moment, but failed once again. That same photo had been displayed among the flower arrangements on Eddy’s casket.

  As she recalled the funeral scene, the one image seared into her memory was Stanley’s angry face staring off into the distance. It didn’t even seem like the same person who was the proud baseball coach smiling at her from the team photo.

  Stanley couldn’t focus on anyone or anything at Eddy’s funeral. That faraway gaze and angry countenance seemed to be a permanent fixture in Stanley’s life. He stood at the gravesite like a statue as all of the mourners quietly and respectfully drifted away. He didn’t or wouldn’t hear the murmured condolences and words of encouragement from friends and family.

  There was o
ne lone figure who had been standing a distance from the graveside service. It was an older man whose face was shrouded in sadness. No one noticed him, even though he was the last one to leave the cemetery on the day of Eddy’s funeral.

  Lisa took one last look into her son’s bedroom. The posters, photos, and memorabilia of her son’s joyous but short life seemed to be mocked and defiled by the sight of Stanley lying in Eddy’s bed. Lisa would never be able to pass this room without seeing the image of Stanley seated on that bed holding his son’s baseball glove and crying into it the day after the funeral. That scene played over and over in Lisa’s mind like a perverse and persistent film loop that just wouldn’t stop.

  Lisa sighed as she walked away from Eddy’s bedroom door and all the memories left inside, along with her sleeping husband who had become more distant than a stranger.

  At the end of the hallway, Lisa entered the living room. Even though she had tried to rearrange the furniture and décor several times, she was always struck by the memory of the friends and family who gathered for the reception right after Eddy’s funeral service.

  The room had been filled with their friends and family who were all trying to think of something to say that mattered. Stanley wouldn’t talk to anyone or even come into the house. He just stood on the front porch with that same angry stare.

  At least Lisa had been able to feel the loss and sorrow, but Stanley only felt guilt and an all-consuming anger.

  As Lisa walked out of the front door, crossed the porch, and descended the steps toward the front walk, she looked at the driveway where her whole world had changed just two years ago.

  CHAPTER 2

  Stanley—filled with pride, joy, and expectation—placed a bicycle helmet on his son, Eddy. Eddy sat triumphantly on his bike that had just had the training wheels removed for the first time. Stanley held the training wheels in his hand and thought that this was one of the true rites of passage in a young boy’s life.