Wisdom Found in the Pause: Joie’s Gift

When we get lost while driving, it is common sense to pull over, reroute the GPS, and perhaps change course. When it comes to the course of our lives, however, we often take a very different approach. Each of us has an internal GPS - that still, small voice inside us guiding us to our best and highest good. But what if that small voice is begging us to slow down and re-evaluate our lives? If you’re like most people, you judge this as a waste of time or being lazy. In Wisdom Found in the Pause, Barbara Techel explores both the real-time beauty and long-term benefits of life’s transitional periods.

In what has become Techel’s trademark, Wisdom Found in the Pause shares the profound life lessons we can learn from animals. Her first book, Through Frankie’s Eyes: One woman’s journey to her authentic self, and the dog on wheels who led the way, told the story of how a paralyzed dachshund named Frankie led Barbara to groundbreaking work with children, persons with disabilities, and the elderly. After Frankie’s death, Barbara often felt called to embark on another direction, yet she was reluctant to let go of the purpose and identity she had so closely tied herself to.

Wisdom Found in the Pause is the story of Joie, another paralyzed dachshund, who would serve as Barbara’s teacher, friend, and ultimately angel. Joie’s unexpected death would remind Barbara that the only way to really change our lives is from within. Along the way she received spiritual signposts - some subtle, some profound - that convinced her she was on the right path. Through this journey she realized the most valuable gift we can give ourselves is the time to slow down, hear and heed our inner thoughts, for this is how we will welcome that sweet stillness of being, that wisdom found in the pause.