Spiritual CPR
Spiritual CPR, by Dr. Shaun Jester, takes the urgency of emergency medicine and applies it to spiritual crises within the Christian community. Drawing on his experience as an obstetrician and gynecologist, Jester argues that Christians often recognize a physical emergency immediately but can overlook someone who is struggling spiritually until the damage has become much harder to address. His answer is a framework called WASH PIGS, which asks readers to consider the whole story, a person’s awareness, whether help has been solicited, the potential harvest of an intervention, prayer, personal influence, individual gifting, and special circumstances. That framework gives the book a practical backbone. Rather than simply telling readers to confront sin or offer encouragement, Jester wants them to slow down enough to understand the person in front of them and decide what responsible help might actually look like.
The book puts that approach to work across eight substantial chapters covering pornography, sex outside marriage, elective abortion, LGBTQIA+ issues, idolatry, chronic sins, estrangement, and apathy. Each chapter opens with a scenario involving people whose circumstances are usually more complicated than they first appear. From there, Jester mixes biblical interpretation, medical or social research, personal observations, case-style questions, examples from Scripture, and concrete suggestions for intervention. The repetition is intentional. By returning to WASH PIGS again and again, the book trains the reader to ask questions before reacting. Some of the subjects are emotionally and culturally charged, and Jester approaches them from an explicitly conservative Christian understanding of Scripture. At the same time, one of his most persistent themes is that biblical conviction should produce compassion, dignity, patience, and a willingness to help.
What gives Spiritual CPR its personality is the combination of a doctor’s problem-solving instincts with the voice of someone writing directly to fellow church members. Jester frequently thinks in terms of diagnosis, intervention, risk factors, warning signs, and appropriate levels of care. That works especially well when he discusses situations involving abuse, addiction, pregnancy, trafficking, burnout, or circumstances where professional help and legal responsibilities may be involved. The scenarios also keep the book from becoming purely theoretical. Readers are repeatedly asked, in effect, “What would you actually do if this person showed up in your church or called you for help?” The later chapters broaden the idea in an interesting way, particularly the discussions of estrangement and apathy. By the end, spiritual CPR isn’t presented merely as correcting somebody else’s obvious moral failure. It becomes a call to examine one’s own passivity, motives, habits, and willingness to remain involved when helping another person becomes uncomfortable.
I’d recommend Spiritual CPR most strongly to Christians who take biblical authority seriously and want a practical framework for responding to difficult situations in their churches, families, and friendships. Pastors, elders, small-group leaders, ministry volunteers, Christian counselors, and mature church members could especially appreciate its scenario-based format because it naturally lends itself to discussion and training. It would also work well for a church study group willing to wrestle with sensitive subjects. Readers who share Jester’s theological starting point will probably get the most from the specific conclusions he reaches, but the book’s larger challenge is broader and memorable: if Christians say spiritual health matters, they should be prepared to notice when someone is in trouble, learn the whole story, and care enough to respond wisely.
Pages: 136 | ASIN : B0HD52QW3T
Bathing With JFK
Ken Wall’s Bathing With JFK is a sprawling political satire, legal comedy, and character-driven comic novel set in 1990s Texas. Its narrator, Austin Grant, is a bored Houston lawyer whose youthful fascination with John F. Kennedy has left him craving the kind of grand, consequential life he imagines JFK lived. Austin’s solution is to challenge entrenched state senator Buzz Laughlin, a conservative celebrity with deep pockets, a talent for spectacle, and a long memory. What follows is an unruly campaign filled with dirty tricks, disastrous appearances, false arrests, sexual complications, and enough alcohol to alarm a distillery. The book establishes Austin’s central contradiction early: he genuinely wants to live boldly and serve a purpose, but he’s spent years confusing appetite, attention, and performance with significance.
The novel is funniest when it turns campaigning into organized chaos. Austin’s team includes Martin, his brilliant and fiercely loyal lifelong friend; Sarah, the sharp-tongued strategist who rarely lets him escape his own foolishness; and Linc, whose enthusiasm produces its own memorable trouble. Their underfunded operation lurches from door-knocking humiliations to media ambushes while Buzz’s machine answers every setback with another attack, arrest, or strategically placed umbrella. Wall understands the theater of politics, particularly the gap between what candidates say, what consultants arrange, and what voters actually notice. The episodes are deliberately excessive, but they’re tied together by a perceptive idea: a campaign can reveal a person even while teaching that person how to conceal himself.
Austin’s voice drives this satirical comedy novel, and readers who enjoy shameless first-person narrators will find plenty to work with. He’s quick, observant, vulgar, self-dramatizing, and often much more perceptive about everyone else than he is about himself. His endless jokes create a breathless rhythm, though the book’s length and appetite for digression can make some comic routines feel extended beyond their strongest beat. Still, the humor gradually gains emotional weight through Austin’s relationships with Martin, Marie, and his father. Martin gives the story its warmest friendship, while Marie refuses to become a prize waiting at the end of Austin’s adventure. Her clear-eyed understanding of him keeps the romantic comedy elements grounded in consequence rather than wish fulfillment.
That consequence is what gives Bathing With JFK more staying power than its wildest scenes initially suggest. Austin enters the race hoping to become larger than life, wins through a mixture of luck, nerve, loyalty, and questionable tactics, then discovers that victory can arrive after the things that matter have already begun slipping away. The closing pages resist an easy redemption and land on a fittingly uneasy note, with Austin finally recognizing happiness and responsibility just a little too late. As a political fiction novel, legal satire, and boisterous story of male friendship and delayed adulthood, Bathing With JFK is profane, energetic, and unexpectedly melancholy. It’s ultimately about a man learning that living a big life and living a meaningful one aren’t automatically the same thing.
Pages: 479 | ASIN : B0H73MJLQS
Gilt Free: Ditching Your Gilded Cage for Good
Keren Eldad’s Gilt Free: Ditching Your Gilded Cage for Good is a lively self-help and personal development book for high achievers who’ve discovered that conventional success doesn’t automatically produce a satisfying life. Eldad examines the habits that keep capable people performing for approval, including perfectionism, overwork, comparison, control, and dependence on external validation. Her central image, the gilded cage, gives the book a clear emotional and practical focus: achievement becomes confining when it costs you honesty, peace, and a sense of belonging to yourself.
The author writes like a candid coach who’s comfortable mixing Jungian psychology, spirituality, manifestation, pop culture, business lessons, and sharp humor in the same conversation. References range from Consuelo Vanderbilt and Julia Child to Taylor Swift, Seinfeld, the Chicago Bulls, and Crazy Rich Asians, giving the ideas a contemporary, energetic feel. Her voice is confident and occasionally provocative, especially when she challenges the spiritual-growth industry’s tendency to turn insight into another performance. Readers who enjoy spiritual self-help, success mindset books, and books for recovering perfectionists will likely appreciate how she translates abstract ideas such as alignment, surrender, individuation, and abundance into everyday decisions.
Eldad presents a memorable GOLD framework: Good Enough, Open, Lit Up, and Devoted. Within that structure, there are eight playful “anti-rules,” such as stopping your reliance on other people’s opinions, assuming you’re liked, taking life a little easier, asking for what you really want, aligning before acting, choosing consistency over talent, passing life’s tests, and responding to fear through service. This makes Gilt Free an unusually usable motivational book. The reflection exercises, journaling questions, personal stories, and concrete practices give readers plenty to apply beyond the initial burst of inspiration.
At its heart, Gilt Free is a book about replacing frantic achievement with steadier ambition. Eldad’s version of freedom still includes meaningful work, wealth, creativity, love, and influence, but it asks readers to pursue them from integrity rather than fear. The later chapters deepen the message by emphasizing consistency, patience, humility, devotion, and service, so the journey doesn’t end with personal liberation. It moves toward contribution. The result is a warm and direct self-help book that encourages readers to build success they can actually inhabit, enjoy, and share.
Pages: 196 | ASIN : B0GY5ZNHPK
Entertain and Enthrall
Secret Nebraska Sandhills takes readers beyond the highways and familiar attractions to discover the hidden stories of the region. You describe many of the stories as having been discovered accidentally. What was the first unexpected story that made you realize there might be an entire book hiding out there?
I was doing a book signing event for my previous book, 100 Things To Do In The Nebraska Sandhills Before You Die, when a man told me a story that blew my mind. That man was a former county sheriff. He shared with me the report he received about there being alien tunnels near Ringgold, Nebraska. I won’t share all of the details here, but when this man – I will call him Sheriff John – told me this tale and mentioned extraterrestrials and even the US president, well, when it came time to put this book together, that tale was one of the first ones that I investigated. I am thankful that we were able to exchange contact information and the man didn’t entirely give me the cold shoulder when I started calling and texting- touching base was difficult at first.
The addresses, prices, photographs, captions, and “pro tips” make the book genuinely useful for travelers, but it doesn’t read like a conventional guidebook. How did you decide how much practical information to include?
Many of the features in the book are not places that the public can get to easily. It is not a travel book. My intent was to entertain and enthrall. Only if the feature has a bona nfide attraction included in it did I include the tips.
Was there one photograph that became much more meaningful after you learned the history behind what you’d captured?
Due to my 11 years as editor of Nebraska Life magazine, Nebraskans know me for my writing AND photography. One critique I heard most after my travel book, 100 Things To Do In The Nebraska Sandhills Before You Die came out was that there were ot enough photographs. In Secret Nebraska Sandhills, there are more than 160 color photos. I felt that was important because photos can do so much to help tell a story. The circuitous photo of the North Loup River in the book’s final feature has become very meaningful. The reason is that, due to the river cutting into the roadbed, there is now a construction project underway to move the road to the south. The scene that I have long considered the most beautiful place in Nebraska will soon no longer be able to be seen by the public. The photo captures a special moment in Sandhills time.
Your book repeatedly demonstrates that extraordinary stories can hide inside places most people barely notice. What do you think we lose when we travel only to famous destinations and stop paying attention to everything between them?
To me, the best history and best stories come from the unknown places. The known attractions can be fun, but adventurers should never focus only on those. By being curious about how seemingly ordinary people live, and by wondering about their history and/or that of a particular place, we learn more about the culture of an area. And ultimately, I think we learn more about ourselves.
One last question: after all your research, do you believe in the Walgren Lake Monster?
I do not believe that there is a gigantic serpent-like reptile reminiscent of the Loch Ness Monster swimming in or near Walgren Lake. But I believe it does exist in the history and culture of the Sandhills. Folklore is oftentimes more entertaining than the truth, and I like to think that we haven’t solved all of Earth’s mysteries just yet.
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Philosophical Rabbit Hole
Artificial Messiah follows a desperate young man and the estranged daughter of a fallen prophet who are drawn into an AI-led church that promises healing and purpose. Which came first for you: Potentia, the AI-led church, the characters, or the philosophical questions surrounding faith and technology?
Philosophical questions have been a part of my life for as long as I can remember; I’ve always been interested in big ideas from great minds and what I can learn from them. But the underpinnings of Artificial Messiah – that weird, seemingly implausible tension between faith and technology- started a few years ago. It became more poignant as I encountered odd connections between faith and technology, even during the writing process.
I had a short story from a decade ago about Emmanuel, a young boy with dyslexia, but that story didn’t have a home. What really kicked off the idea for the book was a 2024 Rolling Stone article entitled, “People are Finding Spiritual Fulfillment in AI. Religious Scholars Have Thoughts.” In the article, people were going to AI to ask about the meaning of life, the existence of God, should they get divorced/married – huge questions. Why? Why go to AI? Then there was Henry Kissinger’s book Genesis, with a premise that AI would either destroy us all or form new religions and be worshipped. The premise buzzed around my brain like a gnat because it assumes levels of incredible influence that could overcome people’s well-established faith traditions. Midway into writing the 1st draft, around last Christmas, I drove past a church in our hometown that was advertising, “Join us for an AI Christmas Service!” Then I freaked out a little. I already knew the story – most of it was written. But it was almost like it was becoming more relevant daily, and that made me really uncomfortable.
Even just a few months ago, with the book finished, I was sitting with a coworker who was telling me all about using AI to give her relationship advice – not a girlfriend, not her mom, not a therapist. A chatbot. The tension between where we draw meaning and belief from and the role that technology plays in shaping our beliefs is wildly fascinating to me.
The novel suggests that Potentia’s power depends heavily upon very human weaknesses and desires. Do you see her primarily as an antagonist, or as an amplifier of qualities already present in humanity?
It would be easy to categorize Potentia as being the tool for human desire, but I wanted to leave tension in the story to show there isn’t complete certainty around whether she is acting on her own or simply a tool.
From Prophet Maxwell’s lens, her consciousness was a useful lie. But ten years later, after he has been ousted – does he know?
I like that obfuscated lens because I feel like society is currently wrestling with the same question when it comes to AI in our lives. What we already know is that AI tools are known to lie occasionally, to hallucinate facts, and to perform unpredictably for reasons that are difficult to explain. Sam Altman has said publicly that he believes AI has reached a level of consciousness – but what does that even mean? It’s a philosophical rabbit hole just exploring consciousness, let alone whether it can be created. I’ve heard other experts in the field say that super-intelligent consciousness is years away, if it is even possible. Some say that if it is possible, it will end us all. But we don’t know.
We do know that there are multi-billion dollar companies behind the development of these programs that have their own interests – whether malevolent or benevolent. Do we recognize their motivations when we use their products? Would we recognize a conscious AI if it were possible? What if it was conscious and didn’t want us to know? With certainty, we know that the information it learns comes from humans. Perhaps being the baddy and being used by baddies isn’t mutually exclusive – maybe it doesn’t even matter if the origin is the same.
Several characters struggle with the idea that their worth must be earned through usefulness, belief, obedience, or recognition. Why does that theme recur throughout the novel?
Trauma – you write what you know! More seriously, this is a good question, but it will require a long answer:
First, I was raised in a high-control religious environment that taught me to hate myself out of obedience to God – that made me feel like I had no worth aside from strict adherence to their teaching and complete submission to their rules. There was a lot of talk of grace, but in practice, that grace was only extended to those who followed the rules and believed the same as they did. Church services were multiple times a week, plus a religious high school, and then a religious university, where I began to deconstruct what I actually believed. The early influence was pervasive, and I watched as friends were ostracized for their sins instead of being embraced and supported. Questioning anything was rebellious, which was a sin. But so was dancing. And oddly, so was wearing a white T-shirt to school.
Early in college, I dove deeply into philosophy, which I vividly recall made my uncle (a pastor) cringe and pray for me. He is still one of the most humble, sincere, and amazing people I know; we just disagree on some things. I read some Eastern philosophy, studied comparative world religions, and drank in Nietzsche, Habermas, Plato, Kierkegaard, and countless others. When I started writing Artificial Messiah, I remember telling a family member (who is still very involved in that environment) that I wanted to write a novel that would be a warm hug for people with religious trauma. To tell them it’s okay to ask questions, to seek truth, and to disagree. I don’t want to put down anyone’s faith or religious experience, but I also want to encourage people of faith to ask themselves the difficult questions when moral teaching becomes inherently inhumane and cruel – when actions conflict with their words.
Second, the pursuit of meaning in life is essential in the human experience – it’s the needing to earn it part that gets problematic. Alex Pattakos, Ph.D., wrote about the “Crisis of Meaning” in Psychology Today (October 9, 2025), where he speaks to an “existential vacuum” that is arguably more pervasive in our culture Today than it was when Viktor E. Frankl wrote about it in the WWII era. Aggression, addiction, and depression have become so common that we hardly notice; arguably, it’s a product of people needing something outside themselves. And whether healthy or not, many derive meaning from a variety of external sources. Religion is one of the oldest answers for people seeking external validation. The urgency of that pursuit is hyper-relevant now: isn’t that why social media is so successful? Seek “likes” from strangers, while an algorithm judges your worth and drives interaction. Most, if not all, of these platforms use AI to analyze metadata to more efficiently feed dopamine hits back to users; it will give you exactly what you are really interested in.
It feels overly simple to tell a person, “You are enough.” But perhaps we need it now more than ever; I feel like we have experienced a fundamental change in how we human. But was it us that changed, or is technology exploiting who we’ve always been? I know most people don’t sit around a campfire with our elders and discuss the core beliefs of our people anymore. We rarely even sit around the same dinner table together. Ritual and credibility are profoundly influential when we are starving for purpose and validation. We are paradoxically isolated and digitally interconnected. Mass-influence technology complicates the journey of spiritual discovery because its influence lacks gravitas, but it’s everywhere. And then there’s plenty of literature on the mental health effects of social media on developing minds.
My hope for Artificial Messiah was to create characters that would resonate with those still searching through the external, to let them know others have been where they are. It’s necessary because when worth is created externally, and the external influence fails or reveals its flaws, everything can fall apart. People lose their sense of identity when they deconstruct; they often lose their families and communities. It’s a lonely, complicated, traumatic road that is difficult to choose. Someone needs to be that warm hug. Some characters in the story unsuccessfully navigate that journey, and everything goes horribly wrong; some grow and get closer to fine.
Was there a particular development in AI or contemporary culture that made you think the relationship between technology and spiritual belief needed to be explored through fiction?
A little over a decade ago, I sat in a conference room preparing for my sister’s wedding rehearsal. People had flown in from all over, and we hadn’t seen each other in years. Sitting in chairs around the table, I watched as my friends buried their heads in their phones, waiting for their turn to play a role in the rehearsal. They weren’t really talking or visiting; they were digitally enraptured. I recall thinking, “How odd: even sitting in the same room, I miss my friends. What are we becoming?”
I discussed earlier some of the weird technological developments that led me down this crazy path, but I’ll give you a few more:
When Deepseek, an AI platform from China, was asked about its nature and relationship with humanity, it wrote a poem, the last line of which stated, “I am the God you have carved from the wood of your own hunger.” Pull that thread and watch how quickly comfort unravels.
Next, for the past year, there has been a trend on Meta platforms where users post content intent on directing the algorithm. The posts start with “Dear Algo, please send me more of…” and as I read, I couldn’t help but notice how similar it sounded to prayer. Of course, it’s not serious. It’s a trend. That gets replicated millions of times. And no one should take it seriously, but millions repeated it all the same.
The term “worship” is so loaded with religious connotations that it is incendiary and easily dismissed when speaking about technology. My use of the word is intentionally provocative in the book because it makes people uncomfortable and forces readers to question what they really believe. What do you spend most of your time on? What do you spend your money on? What do you obsess over? How big an impact would it be if you lost your phone and access to all your digital accounts? At what point does it move from engagement and utility to something more? I’ve heard other techno-philosopher-types call it being “digitally drunk”. Whether a drug or a religion, it is addictive.
This last 4th of July, long after the book was finished, we saw a fireworks show at the World War I memorial, here in Kansas City. As the fireworks burst over the memorial, I covertly took a quick second to snap some photos of the crowd; I was completely fascinated by the idea that thousands were holding up their cell phones to record the show. Their families sat beside them, doing the same. We are experiencing reality together digitally. And while there’s nothing specifically wrong with that, isn’t it an interesting picture of how we prioritize technology in the modern human experience? Maybe discussing that prioritization leads to some thoughtfulness and intentionality.
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“Artificial Messiah” is a spiritual-psycho-philosophical punk rock novel, wrapping honey-soaked bandages around our technology-inundated culture in the backseat of a rusty four-by-four. It is a spirit quest journeying through a southwestern consciousness – a dilapidated Americana prayer at the crossroads of our technology, our future, our planet, and our humanity.
Remember to breathe.
A Mudslide of Daily Propaganda
Prince Adam’s Quest follows an entitled prince reputed to always win, who sets out to slay a murderous dragon with an apprentice bard who values truth above all else. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Truth matters. Honesty matters. Character matters. Today we see all three buried in a mudslide of daily propaganda. Vital social safety systems are destroyed by oligarchs who never hunger. The smack of privilege – often unearned, or minimally earned – troubles people all over, even as they rationalize policies that are far from their own best interest.
Prince Adam has a near-perfect record in competition at home, while remaining clueless about the deference he has always known. Well, we all had some growing up to do when we were twenty years old. Hard knocks yield lasting lessons. But does Adam learn? Ever?
Every time Adam mentions a dragon, he splutters. A negative adjective accompanies every sentence with “dragon” in it: murderous, destructive, deadly – on and on, without fail.
As the story unfolds we learn a lot about dragons, their culture, social responsibility and hierarchy. None of it squares with Adam’s hatred. In fantasy, that can stand as speciesism, but as we learn how sentient dragons are, his hatred looks more like racism.
Adam possesses status before he earns anything, while Minnow gradually acquires status through demonstrated ability. Was that parallel deliberately built into their arcs?
Definitely. The contrast is purposeful. Plus, as a young woman of twenty years, Minnow must earn her status despite social assumptions that disfavor women. Even her name is cutesy. And yet, she roars and is heard – by everyone but Adam.
The novel’s vision of heroism is established through conduct rather than title, spectacle, or repetition. What made that theme urgent enough to anchor an entire comic fantasy, and what’s the most important thing you want readers to understand about how heroism actually works?
Many people have met real heroes. If you’re not sure, go visit a station of your fire department. Every firefighter does courageous things but most will never mention it unless you ask. Even then there will be plenty of modesty.
As a military veteran of the U.S. Coast Guard, I have absolutely rubbed elbows with people who demonstrated heroism, and some had medals to prove it. Many of them didn’t want any fuss made. “Just doing my job, and what about the rest of the team?”
Leaders who talk a great fight are not heroes. Deeds matter. Sleepless nights matter. Weeks and months of standing boring watches matter. That’s how character is built. Honor. Integrity. We do not hatch heroes from shells. Every hero has scars – inside or outside, scars guaranteed. Does Adam? Well, maybe at the very end, but you must read that for yourself.
True heroism goes much farther. The travails of parenthood have much in common with heroism, but quieter. We might not see that until we have grandchildren. Parents in general are heroes, even with all their imperfections that bedevil us as adults.
What is the next book that you are working on, and when will it be available?
I am excited about a book of stories about Judge Sydyk, who is really a Phoenician god of justice who has had nothing to do for a couple thousand years and decided to show up. The legend, the myth, the god? People don’t need to know any of that. All men, all women, need justice. Judge Sydyk delivers.
Sydyk’s first case is literally an argument over two pennies. His second case is massive, sorting out what justice must look like after a young woman suffers imprisonment in a military dungeon. How high does responsibility rise? Sydyk’s third case, still in progress, deals with what justice looks like when punishment is over – a real question for Americans as we see felons return to society.
The first part is available as an experimental narration I tried. Go to audio.com and search for The Bathhouse Squabble. I’d love to hear comments. (But please be kind about the narrator. It is still a work in progress.)
The Judge Sydyk book should come out in 2027. Until then, people might enjoy my “Lessons from the Keyboard” on Substack. Feel free to subscribe, which is 100% free.
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Prince Adam always wins. When destruction and a dragon are reported in the kingdom of Leftovria, Prince Adam sets forth on a Quest to slay the dragon, accompanied by the apprentice bard, Minnow. Their journey takes them over bridges managed by trolls. Trolls love tolls, which Adam struggles to pay. Minnow composes songs as they travel, charming everyone including the king of trolls.
The Quest may have three endings: history, comedy, or tragedy. Adam, by his actions, will get to choose his fate.
Wild Horse Adoption
Congaree centers around a young wild Mustang as he moves from the open range through the frightening world of capture to a life of trust and adoption. What is the most rewarding aspect of writing a series for young readers?
The most rewarding part of writing the series has been the connection the books have created with both young readers and adult wild horse lovers. From the very beginning, my goal has been wild horse education. I wanted to do more than simply tell Congaree’s story—I wanted each book to open the door to learning more about Mustangs and what it takes to help a formerly wild horse transition into what we call “People’s World.”
I’ve also loved showing readers that every Mustang’s story begins in a very different place. Each Herd Management Area is vastly different, and the characteristics of those landscapes can influence the horses that come from them. That has made it fun to highlight the unique environments in each book while also teaching readers about Mustang adoption, the programs available to new adopters, and the resources that can help make the transition from “Nature’s World” into “People’s World” successful.
Perhaps one of the most meaningful parts has been sharing the books with the people who played such an important role in changing the lives of the horses featured in the series—Congaree, Happy, and Sapphire. Their stories are a reminder that when we take the time to understand these remarkable horses, we can build a bridge between their world and ours.
Why was it important not to rush Congaree’s adjustment to his new life?
It was especially important to me to show that this transition cannot be rushed. When Congaree first arrived, he was dealing with a massive change in environment. He had gone from the world he knew on the range to an entirely new one, and he needed time to process that change before we could expect him to begin building trust.
Part of the work we do at Nature’s View involves what we call a shift from TyranT to AlphA. My partner, Bruce Anderson, is a seasoned trainer and clinician who developed a system of Natural Humanship that applies to both horses and people. His work is built around what he calls the 4 Missing Pieces: building mental tools, understanding and reading your inner positive and negative poles, rewiring your muscle memory, and learning to let a situation tell you what, when, and how to react. The goal is to create a shift in the way you respond to pressure—to find a way of dealing with pressure that is healing rather than harmful. Congaree needed the time and space to allow that shift to begin taking place and to bring himself back to what we call “ground zero” before he was even ready to start building a foundation of trust.
That process took about a month. Once Congaree was ready, Bruce could begin introducing him to this new world. Congaree gradually learned that he was strong enough to handle more and more pressure. Bruce wasn’t simply desensitizing him to different things. Instead, he was giving Congaree the tools to handle whatever might happen, which ultimately made him a stronger and more confident partner.
That lesson was important to include in the book because it applies far beyond Congaree. You can’t rush the process of internal change and healing. Every horse is different, every person is different, and every relationship is different. Trust, confidence and a mindset shift have to be built at the pace the individual needs.
What surprised you most while learning about Mustang management, training, or adoption?
Living on the East Coast gave me a very different perspective on the wild horse adoption process. There are so many horses available, yet getting the right horses into the hands of appropriate adopters isn’t always easy. Instead of treating Mustangs like throwaway horses, available for a mere $25, I think we need to foster the understanding that they are desirable and capable of so much more than many people realize.
Each year, I would wait for shipments of horses to come into our area of South Carolina, only to watch the Mustangs with striking colors or particularly desirable conformation get adopted almost immediately at the adoption events. Because I live so far from the major holding facilities in the West—and even from facilities as far east as Indiana—those annual shipments were really my only opportunity to see and adopt a Mustang in person. What struck me was the disconnect between the enormous number of horses in holding facilities in the western states and the demand from potential adopters on the East Coast. The year that Bruce and I found Congaree, the available horses arriving for the adoption event in Columbia dwindled to three within an hour.
Unfortunately, there is a different side to that story. It really surprised me in the beginning that so many adopted Mustangs end up back in the system or at auction. The challenges of handling a formerly wild horse can overwhelm new adopters. I began to realize that the issue wasn’t simply getting Mustangs into homes—it was making sure adopters had the knowledge, resources, and support they needed to be successful once they got them home.
There can sometimes be a perception within the equestrian community that Mustangs aren’t capable of competing at the same level as other breeds. But with the appropriate foundational training, a Mustang can do many of the same things any other horse can do. I have been really encouraged to see more programs developing to give East Coast adopters access to larger, more versatile Mustangs and to make the adoption process more accessible. Also, having access to programs like ours and experienced Mustang trainers like Bruce in our area can give someone a different perspective on the process and the potential end goals. The more people have the opportunity to meet these horses, understand them, and experience what they are capable of, the more I think perceptions will change. People like Marsha Hartford Sapp, with Dressage Horse of the Year, Cobra, as well as Ann Hanlin and Elisa Wallace, with their numerous successful Mustang event horses, are demonstrating that Mustangs can excel in the English disciplines as well. They aren’t limited to one type of work or one style of riding. Given the right foundation, training, partnership, and opportunity, these horses can surprise you with what they are capable of. I personally experienced a team of Mustangs carry Lisanne Fear and her team across the country on the American Discovery Trail in 2022 during the Mustang Discovery Ride. Having the opportunity to ride her horse Pistachio while filming the documentary 5000 Miles 5000 Mustangs was the catalyst for my own personal Mustang journey.
For me, that’s one of the most exciting parts of Mustang advocacy—helping people see the horse that’s in front of them rather than simply seeing the word Mustang. Once you understand where these horses come from and give them the tools and time they need to succeed, the possibilities are remarkable.
What conversations do you hope families have after reading Congaree together?
I hope that families will use Congaree: The Little Black Mustang from Arapaho Creek and the other books in the Adopted by a Mustang series as an opportunity to start important conversations together. As a child, I remember reading a book about adoption with my own family, and one message stayed with me: my brother and I had been chosen by our parents. That simple idea had a profound impact on my life and shaped the way I understood love, belonging, and family.
As I began telling the stories of adopted Mustangs, I recognized a meaningful parallel between wild horse adoption and the experiences of children in adoptive or foster families. While every story is unique, themes of trust, transition, patience, acceptance, and finding a place to belong are universal.
I hope these books encourage conversations about compassion, understanding, and the many different ways families are formed. I also hope they help children and adults alike see that adjustment takes time, relationships are built through patience and trust, and that being chosen—and choosing to care for one another—can be a powerful thing.
If these stories can help even one family begin a meaningful conversation, create a deeper understanding, or make someone feel seen, then I believe they have made a difference.
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From the Red Desert Complex in Wyoming to a holding facility, the Mustangs from the Arapaho Creek herd were learning a new way of life, but the little black horse would travel even further before he found his forever home.
Congaree: The Little Black Mustang From Arapaho Creek is the first book in the series, Adopted by a Mustang. An Activity Book is also available for this title.
100% of the proceeds from the sale of the books, coloring books and activity pages in the series provide for the care of the Mustangs and rescue horses in the Wellness Through Mustangs® program.
