Chapter 44 — The Twelfth Window

Good evening all… 

John 16:12, 15 says “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear.”   That’s pretty much one of the themes of the rest of the story of The Twelfth Window.  Such a verse stood out to me that there’s a bigger and wider universe of knowledge and existence and love than can be recorded into the Bible.  C.S. Lewis had it right in The Last Battle:  the Bible is just the cover and title page to a beautiful and eternal story.

As I avoid hateration from the parents of my minor readers, the chapter opens when Lisa and her beloved are eighteen.  The first setting is a familiar one to anybody who has graduated high school.  The second takes place in their temple, a scene I carried directly into the story from my own experience of God at Central Synagogue in Manhattan.  If you live in the NYC area, I suggest you visit it and you will see exactly what I mean.  Try to go on a sunny day so you can experience the full effect.

They told us in Sunday School that if you are good, you will go to Heaven when you die.  However, there are precious little details on Heaven but most of the descriptions of Heaven come directly from Our Lord.   We have committed to Jesus by baptism and/or a confirmation ceremony, and we’re told to look forward to His return.  As has been taught for centuries, Christ is going to return for His Bride (the Church or Israel, depending who you are) and so I thought it important to weave the eschatological with the romantic in The Twelfth Window.  When you get to the end of the book it will all make sense, just like the end of the book called Earth will make sense when we get to the end. 

(John 16:16, John 16:6 and Hosea 2:19-20 also play a central role in the book to this acceptance of a deeper commitment.  I drew Lisa’s acceptance from Luke 1:46-55).

Next blog, I will cover Chapters 45, 46, and 47.  This means we are getting real close to Chapter 50, which closes out the gang’s high school years and brings the story into the final Act V.

The Twelfth Window is available for purchase on www.12thwindow.com, www.authorhouse.com, www.amazon.com, and other fine places that sell books online!

–J.M. Norwood

Chapters 41, 42 and 43 — Act IV

The election is over and like other Americans, my mind and life and time are my own again.  So, let’s plow into the beginning of Act IV, which encompasses Chapters 41, 42 and 43. 

Chapter 41 is inspired by Ezekiel 39:25-26 and John 6:15.  Since the change of seasons were important to the writing of the story, I felt it a good idea to use the spring of my own senior year to convey the feeling of a “home-stretch.”  I’m sure that Jesus’ disciples and supporters felt the same home-stretch feel upon His triumphal entry into Jerusalem.  Stronger than a New Year feel.   I counterbalanced the grating and uncomfortable feeling in Act III with the giddiness of the final spring of high school and reconciled love.  Which is why “reconciling with the one you love is its own spring.”

Chapter 42 is, without a doubt, a shadow of the Transfiguration.  Whereas the Transfiguration in the Bible was real, I used this chapter for the story’s heroine to catch a glimpse of what the reader already knows.  Many dreams are a hodge-podge of past events and conversations.  Notice the scene that the declaration takes place in; it’s a place of worship under construction and called a word yet unknown to that world.  I was trying to show that Jesus was building His Church the whole time that He was on earth but the impact on the world was still to-be-seen.  I’d be lying if I left out the reason for Lisa’s reaction being unlike that of the disciples that witnessed the Transfiguration, and it has to do with conversations that I have had with some Jewish people on the subject of Jesus Christ.  Even so, it is declared to her still that something will be done about her nightmares.

Finally, Chapter 43 brings the long-tenuous relationship between Michael and Mr. Chess to a head.  It shows the choice that Lisa makes by the end of the chapter.  She fights both physical illness and mental stress from the conflict and is healed in the end because of her decision.  Our soul is also healed when we decide–even when put on the spot–to choose Jesus.  Ephesians 6:1-4 and Sirach 3:1-6 both make an appearance on page 164 of The Twelfth Window. 

The Twelfth Window would make a great gift this Christmas!  You can purchase it from many places such as www.12thwindow.com, www.amazon.com, and more! 

–J.M. Norwood